Trinity
by megamatt09
Summary: Harry is the youngest Sorcerer Supreme in history. That's just the easiest part, the real adventure begins afterwards. DC and Marvel crossover featuring that Potter guy. Harry/Kara/Jean/Four More.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One: The Boy Who Wasn't. **

A young man with green eyes and dark hair stood in the middle of a cave. Why was he in the middle of a cave, you may ask? He had to be somewhere in this strange world. This would be the best place for him to be.

The truth was that he was completing the trials to achieve an extremely important accomplishment. He would make history if he accomplished this. If he finished this final trial, then he would have access to a title that many would give their right arm for. This young man didn't have to give his right arm to achieve something that lofty. It might have been easier if he had though.

"You are at the final trial. There are three portals before you. Choose wisely for one is the way out and the other two will lead to failure. One of the two leads to an extremely lethal encounter which you may be unable to return form."

The young man channeled the energy around him. It flowed into his hands. Portal magic tripped some extremely hardened sorcerers up. One miscalculation in the spell could be the difference between sending you across the world and sending you into some kind of hell dimension.

Time did run shortly and the young man went through the portal that felt right.

Seconds passed, and he found himself out an old looking living room. There were antiques all about the wall. Some of them were harmless. Others were quite sentient. Regardless they were all fascinating looking and when he passed through the portal, the young man realized one thing.

"I did it."

"Yes, you did, but I didn't have any doubt that you were."

A middle aged looking man dressed in a black and purple cloak walked from the shadows. He still looked formidable but he also showed his age. He was the one and only Sorcerer Supreme of Earth, Doctor Stephen Strange. At least he was until about thirty seconds ago when his young charge exited the portal and became the youngest Sorcerer Supreme ever.

He felt rather pleased, he had been at this post for over four decades, and finally found a worthy successor. Some people in magical power didn't know when to hang up their artifacts. This man felt time catch up to him years back.

"I knew my son could do it."

An attractive redhead woman stepped into the shadows. Her green eyes matched of the young man who stood before her. She wore a nice female business suit. The red button up blouse matched her hair, and the skirt flowed down to cover her stocking clad legs. A pair of glasses over her bright green eyes added to the effect, even though she didn't really need them. It was just a handy disguise when she was incognito.

There was just something about a pair of glasses that really fooled people.

She leaned forward and wrapped her arms tightly around her son in a hug. Leaning in, the attractive redhead kissed him on the cheek.

"Good, job Harry," she said, beaming completely at him with pride.

The woman's name was Lily Evans, the smartest witch since Rowena Ravenclaw. An inventive master of charms and potions, she decided to excel in other areas. Her inventive ability and wicked imagination to think outside of the book made her a formidable enemy for anyone who crossed her. Those who were her allies counted themselves glad to be so. Those who were her enemies feared that she could do so.

"I had some anxious moments," Harry replied with a smile and he bagged away from his mother. "But, after all that I've been through, the trials of becoming the Sorcerer Supreme aren't that bad."

"Yes, and you give this old man some relief," Strange said, a dry chuckle escaping his voice. "I'm about fifteen years past due for retirement."

"At least you're aware of that," Lily said, with a smile.

"And I feel that I've got as much out of this body as I could, the power that I had to use was taxing," Strange answered and he shook his head. "And the enemies I had to face took several years off of my life as well."

Strange figured that he had a couple of more years to live, given pressing health concerns that visited him. He would make the most out of the life that he had left.

"So, what are you going to do now?" Harry asked curiously.

"I've got a place where I can wait out the rest of my days," Strange said. "I would say that you can call on me, but you know everything that I do and even more, thanks to your mother here."

Lily tried not to get a swollen head from that praise. The pride she had in her son's achievements was enough to give any mother a swollen head.

Strange didn't say that it took Harry far less time to complete his trials than it did for Strange. That did give him a bit of a pride that he had something to teach. He was willing to let go of the power, before it was removed for him forcefully like a couple of his predecessors.

Now there was a young man who could withstand the test of time given his unique biology and abilities.

Lily and Harry walked from the chambers. This was a year of intense training for Harry to even get to the point of the trials.

"You weren't nervous that you were going to fail, were you?" Lily asked her son with a smile when she placed her arm around him.

"Never," Harry said firmly and a beep came from Lily's hip pocket. "Let me guess, duty calls."

"Always," Lily said and she sighed. "I hate to duck and run, especially after you achieved something so great, but you know how Fury is."

Harry knew how Nick Fury was. He met the man. The man called him a bigger headache than Tony Stark on his worst day. Harry took that as a compliment.

Lily gave her son one more hug and a kiss. She broke away from him. "I'm sure you got your responsibilities to attend to, so we'll meet up later."

"I'd like that," Harry said, watching his mother leave.

It was a long set of trials even though Harry passed them with ease. He wondered what Fury wanted.

'_Classified, no doubt,' _Harry thought, he would head on home to get some things done and he had people that he could visit.

X-X-X

The twenty years leading up to this point had been an interesting ride for the young man who was once known as Harry Potter. The twenty one year old wizard pressed his hand against the door of the handsome manor house that his mother owned. The Evans family was well off and they made sure their daughter and grandson got the best and only the best.

He snorted when the name Harry Potter entered his subconscious. That was a name that he hadn't used since he was less than a year ago. He used his mother's maiden name because he identified himself as an Evans and not a Potter. The business world, society, hell even SHIELD, identified him as an Evans and not a Potter.

The only people who knew him as a Potter either died or long since faded into irrelevance.

Lily left Great Britain when Harry was less than a year old. She intended to go back, but while she was gone, the Ministry of Magic passed a law that said that no one was able to leave the country or enter it. Exactly how that was going to be enforced, Harry didn't really know. He chalked it up as another shade of Ministry stupidity.

The Potter family fortune might have been nice to have, but it was just a drop in the bucket compared to the Evans family fortune.

Harry walked passed his mother's study. It was immense. Through her travels with SHIELD and SWORD, she collected a lot of rare knowledge. It put the massive library that he now inherited from Stephen Strange to shame.

He checked his text messages. They were normally a bit livelier than this.

Harry pulled himself onto a massive arm chair right in front of the fire and prepared his next move. He thought about making himself some lunch.

"I guess I can afford to treat myself to something," Harry said, smiling. "I mean, it's not every day that you become the youngest Sorcerer Supreme in history."

'_So, you got it, didn't you?' _a voice asked excitedly, abruptly entering Harry's head.

'_Yes, did you doubt that I would?' _Harry asked, with a half teasing smile on his face and the woman in question shook her head.

'_Absolutely not, anyone who doubts you is kind of an idiot,' _she replied with laughter. _'So, are you feeling alright?'_

'_I feel great, I feel better than great,' _Harry replied, wondering where this conversation was heading.

'_Well, that's great,' _she said in an excited voice. _'I just got out of training myself….oooh the less said about that the better.'_

'_Yes, the aptly named Danger Room,' _Harry commented dryly.

'_Logan seems bound and determined to create a scenario that could trip you up,' _she replied, mirth in her tone.

Harry laughed, the look on Wolverine's face when he completed his boot camp style training without breaking a sweat was priceless. That didn't compare to the look on the face of the leader of the X-Men, but Harry wasn't about to rub salt into the wounds of other people.

At least he wasn't going to do it maliciously, on purpose, except for maybe a little bit.

'_So seriously, Jean, how are you feeling?' _Harry asked.

Jean piped in with a smile on her face. _'I'm really fine, the headaches are going away.'_

It was almost like she quivered underneath Harry's glare even if they were only linked mind to mind. She couldn't really see it from her vantage point. It did travel over the mental link they established to talk with each other.

'_Okay, they're more sporadic, they only come when I'm under high periods of stress,' _Jean thought. _'And I have been working hard on both my college courses and the X-Men, so you know I have a pretty hectic schedule. Even though it's only about the third or fourth most out of the girls that you know.'_

'_Yes, you do work hard Jean,' _Harry said and he gave these headaches a bit of thought. _'I'm pretty sure that this could be some kind of evolution of your powers. If mutant powers follow the same three maturity rule that I do, then you could be coming into your next maturity.'_

He allowed Jean to ponder that thought for a few more moments. Mutant maturities were tricky to figure out.

'_I'm coming to see you in a little bit,' _Harry thought. _'It's been a long time since we could get together, just the two of us.'_

'_Good, I can use the friendly face,' _Jean said.

Perhaps it was just Harry's imagination but there was something akin to annoyance in Jean's voice. She was a dedicated member of the team of the X-Men, helping the newer recruits and older ones alike.

Harry didn't want to say this, but he thought that Jean, and Ororo as well, did more for the team as leaders that Xavier's designated team leader. He wasn't running the school though. So, he would have to agree with what happened.

'_I'll fly over, and we can get something to eat, maybe catch a movie?'_

'_Actually, if you don't mind, I can come over and stay for a couple of weeks,' _Jean said.

Harry wondered if she was going through a trickier stage in her powers than she wanted to let on. That being said, he wasn't about ready to deny Jean something that she wanted.

'_Of course I'll come and pick you up,' _Harry thought. _'We'll head out and get some lunch. Then we'll head back, you know there's a room for you here as always.'_

Harry sensed the relief in Jean's voice and he would have to figure out what was going on. He hated to see anyone in the distress that she seemed to be in, especially the attractive female variety.

'_Great, I'll see you then. I can't wait.'_

Harry would be lying if he said that he could wait.

X-X-X

An attractive redhead female in her late teens waited outside of a mansion. She dressed in a black tank top and jean shorts. The jean shorts snugly wrapped around her tight ass and showcased her long legs. The tank top was something that fit a little bit better a year ago.

What could she say? She was feeling daring today. A little more open with what she was.

She held a bag with everything that she needed for a couple of weeks. After she cooled down, she might be able to make a decision.

Sometimes, you wanted something different in your life at the age of eighteen as opposed to what you wanted at the age of fourteen. Perhaps one might think Jean was being selfish for wanting different things. She highly disagreed.

Jean Grey was one of the founding five of the X-Men, brought together by Professor Xavier. A long time passed since those awkward early days. The uniforms they wore during that time, along with her codename, she wanted to regulate to the dust bin of history.

They expanded with new members, and some members left, while new ones appeared. Harry was one of them for an extremely short time, but he left after a clash of philosophies with certain members of the team. Jean did forge a close relationship with him during the short, seven or eight month period that he was part of the X-Men.

"I'm here, Jean," Harry answered with a smile.

It never ceased to amaze Jean how quickly Harry flashed in front of her. She smiled and took his arm.

She was surprised by this daring gesture. Due to the nature of her powers, she was withdrawn. That may have changed in the last month.

"So, I guess you're ready," Harry said and Jean snuggled into him with a smile on his face.

"You know that I'm ready," Jean said.

She hoped that Xavier wouldn't need her for an emergency this time.

'_I swear sometimes, cock blocking is Charles Xavier's real mutant power,' _Jean thought to herself. She honestly didn't care whether or not Xavier heard her thoughts as she broadcasted them. She almost hoped that he did.

Perhaps he would get the point. Or maybe not, but she seriously considered her future with the X-Men.

The redhead telepath clung to Harry's arm and they appeared in front of an upscale restraraunt.

"So, how are things at the school?" Harry asked.

Jean frowned. "I told you about my nightmare training run a bit more. We would have gotten through that a lot easier, if someone didn't want to do things his way."

"Scott's trying to be a better leader, isn't he?" Harry asked.

"Yes, he's trying," Jean admitted. "The problem is that I swear that his definition of being a better leader means that he has to have the final word about anything. Logan actually had to step in and tell him to knock it off the other day."

Harry allowed Jean to have her rant as they settled into the restaurant. It was honestly better for her to get it out of her system. It was much healthier for her to get it out of her system as well.

Jean pushed her hands on either side of her face.

"He says that he has a girlfriend though," Jean said, but she seemed extremely skeptical.

"Oh, well if he does?" Harry asked and Jean shrugged her shoulders. "Good for him if he does."

There was a type out there for everyone.

"I don't know, we were best friends for a long time," Jean said. "After the incident about six months ago, he turned rather weird. You know, the one that he was kidnapped for about six months and left for dead."

"Did you ever figure out who left him for dead?" Harry asked.

Jean shook her head. "No, and he hasn't acted like he was gone. I mean if Logan pulls these disappearing acts, that's just what Logan does. It's just another Wednesday at the Institute. When Scott does it, the Professor freaked out."

Jean kept her tone even.

"But, you really don't care about Scott's many issues, don't you?" Jean asked him.

"I don't really have a problem with him," Harry said swiftly. "But I could go without hearing about him again."

"Fair enough," Jean replied, and she felt a tension headache coming on again.

She should have known that Harry would have pounced on that one. He lifted his hand and placed it on Jean's forehead. He felt the warmth course underneath his hand.

"How often does this happen?" Harry asked her.

"I told you, they've been happening less," Jean said, trying to get him to drop the matter.

Quickly as this last headache appeared, Jean felt it fade. The redhead brushed her hair out of her face.

"Okay," Harry said, letting the matter drop.

"I guess the happens happen more when I get work up, maybe a couple of weeks away from the Institute will do me some good," Jean said and she smiled. She helped herself to the meal, it tasted delicious. This place made the best soup and sandwiches that money could buy. "Never mind, tell me about the trials."

"I fought some monsters, I defeated some enchanted statues, I solved some puzzles," Harry explained to her.

Jean gave him a knowing smile. "In other words, you did pretty much what you do every other week."

Harry laughed; Jean did hit the nail right on the head. That's one of the reasons why he wasn't afraid of the trials.

"So exactly what does a Sorcerer Supreme do?" Jean asked and she frowned. "Or is this some kind of secret that you can't even hint at?"

"We make sure the balance between order and chaos remains even," Harry explained to her and Jean nodded. "And I'm going to make all kinds of new magical enemies as well. With names that I can't pronounce."

"So, did you ever figure out what the Hairy Balls of Hoggoth or whatever Strange babbled about was all about?" Jean asked and Harry laughed.

Harry drew out his next statement. "Welllll…..Strange is an apt name for that man. Talented, intelligent, but…..you know."

Jean smiled and looked at Harry. He looked better to eat than the food. She didn't really know why she didn't make her move yet.

Maybe this trip was the proper time to do so. Jean thought about her plans. Perhaps she could entice Harry into making a move, because she didn't want to be the one to do it.

That being said, she figured that Harry tried to rile her up in his own way.

X-X-X

Lily Evans gave one of those wistful sighs.

'_Oh, Fury, you never change,' _Lily thought and she shook her head.

There were a lot of things that SHIELD tried to keep under wraps. She did her part to deemphasize the emphasis that the wand wavers had on the world before that shit storm rose. The job wasn't as hard as one would think, given the fact that the civil war between both sides caused many losses.

With the right connections, anyone could get in there and establish a puppet government to achieve control.

Lily looked at matters far beyond the scope of that world. She appeared from SHIELD onto the headquarters of SWORD.

It was a huge orbiting facility that was closer to the moon that it was to Earth. There were monitors that punched up several satellite views. Data about pretty much every known alien race filled the master database.

At least every known alien race that SWORD discovered. Lily would feel like an idiot if she thought that there weren't more. Twenty eight known galaxies and who really knew how many more galaxies out there were among the unknown.

"So, Fury gave you an ear full, didn't he?"

"Yes, but not as much as last time," Lily said.

Lily stood in her SHIELD uniform. It was a skin tight white cat suit with a belt that contained a few weapons. As versatile as magic was, there was just something more personal about shooting a person in the face.

She turned around and saw a stunning blonde with ample curves contained in a top black top approached her. She wore an extremely enticing pair of black leather pants. It was standard ware for SWORD, but it didn't really leave all that much to the imagination.

"How are you doing, Carol?" Lily asked.

The woman, Carol Danvers, smiled at Lily.

"I'm doing well, but I don't think that you're here for any idle chatter," Carol told Lily and Lily looked back at the blonde. She was guilty as charged.

"No, but it is good to see you again," Lily said.

Carol looked at Lily and amusement filled her eyes. "You seem to be in a good mood these days."

"Well, it isn't every day that your son becomes the youngest Sorcerer Supreme in history," Lily said.

Carol nearly forgot. "Oh, Harry mentioned that the last time I saw him. I guess I got caught up in my work such might that I almost forgot."

"It's forgiven, I know how busy you are," Lily said with a smile. "Didn't you just come back from a deep space mission?"

Carol nodded in response. She figured that Lily would want to know all about it.

"There were no signs of intelligent life out there anywhere," Carol stated to her and Lily smiled. "I guess that's just something I had to deal with, you know. Some missions work out well and some missions are absolute and complete disappointments."

Carol suddenly turned around to a blip across the screen. It took her out of the conversation.

That did not go unnoticed on Lily's part. "So, is this an abject disappointment or is it something else?"

Carol's gaze locked onto the blipping section and she didn't really know what to make about that. She bit down on her lip and cast a frown on her face. "I don't know; let me see after a minute."

Was that a disappointment? Carol's excitement brimmed to the fullest.

"No, that's certainly not a disappointment," Carol said. She reminded herself that she had to remain professional. If she had looked like an overgrown schoolgirl, that would defeat the purpose of being professional. "Oh, that explains everything; it's in the Nexus of the Weirdness."

"The Nexus of the Weirdness?" Lily asked.

"Smallville," Carol clarified, shaking her head. "But that doesn't make any sense. It was almost like the ship arrived here. SWORD knew of the other one before it arrived."

"A bit before your time?"

"Yes, a bit more my time," Carol confirmed and she placed her hand on her hips. "Actually SWORD wasn't even really SWORD. It was the branch of SHIELD that was the predecessor of SWORD. We just call it that because for all intents and purposes, that was what it was."

Carol descended into a fit of babbling and Lily smiled.

"Sorry," she added and Lily shook her head.

"Don't be, it's just a lot easier," Lily said.

Her eagle eyes locked onto the map and she knew where it was close to. Was it even a ship or a false flag?

There was one thing for certain about this. Lily racked her brain for an idea.

If SWORD knew about this, then SHIELD knew about it. If SHIELD knew about it, then any number of unsavory figures might have found out about it. It would be a race to the newest piece of technology.

"Excuse me for one minute," Lily said and Carol stood in front of her.

"I know what you're doing, and you know you can't hide it forever," Carol said and Lily raised her hand. "I'm not about to tell them though. So, do what you need to do."

"Thanks Carol," Lily said with a smile.

She had to get in touch with Harry, who should have been back in town by now. Lily hoped that Fury didn't have a chance to pull his britches up before Harry got out there and took care of whatever was there.

X-X-X

"So, I smoked the little bitch boy and I got his little furball as well," Harry concluded the story, with Jean hanging on his every word.

Jean laughed and she clung onto Harry's arm tightly. The two of them enjoyed the Kansas country side. It was a nice summer afternoon. The weather perfectly mixed between not being too hot and not being too cold. The comfortable breeze blew into the faces of both of them.

"I actually prefer to walk this way, as opposed to drive," Jean said. "Who knew that the most powerful sorcerer in the world lives in rural America?"

"Yes, " Harry agreed with a chuckle. "That would throw a few people off my scent, wouldn't it?"

This was his home and he wouldn't change it for anything else in the world. He lived here since he was less than a year old. The Evans held property here and so did the squib branch of the Potter line who was forced to flee around the time of the turn of the 20th century. It was certainly before World War II.

"This seems like a nice area to set out and just enjoy nature," Jean said, and they walked over into a small park.

Jean motioned for him to sit down on a bench and Harry took the suggestion.

Across from the park was the Reeve Dam, which the workers worked to repair. The years of damages and ravages, not to mention the big Earthquake that came through here a few days ago caused it to crack.

Harry knew the reason why it cracked and he would have to go down the road to check on someone to make sure she was doing okay. It wasn't every time that you died and came back to life after all.

He sat down on the bench and Jean took the seat onto his lap. He smiled when she tried to subtly move his hand with her telekensis so it rested on her chest. She settled for her waist to make this a little less obvious.

'_So, if this is the game you want to play, Miss Grey, then I can play it as well,' _Harry thought with a smile and he lightly blew on the back of her neck.

"Harry!" Jean said, and she shifted into her lap. "That tickled."

Harry gave her a shifty smile. "That must have been the wind."

Jean nodded as if she didn't believe it and she collapsed down onto his chest. Her chest inhaled and exhaled with a couple more breaths.

"You know what went through here, don't you?" Jean asked.

Harry smiled in response and his hands shifted so he could get a better grip on her. "Maybe I might have had some….knowledge of the events."

"Rural America, or not, this is the one place on Earth that isn't devoid of action," Jean said and she worked herself against him. "And that was true ever since that Meteor Shower touched down about sixteen or so years ago, wasn't it?"

Harry nodded, he was well aware of the meteor shower. He was five years old when it happened. He wasn't caught in the epicenter of it like a few people that he knew were. Some of those people tried to kill him, as he reminded himself.

"Yes, can't believe that it's been sixteen years," Harry said and he frowned. "Actually in a couple more months it would be the anniversary of the meteor shower touching down."

Jean shifted against Harry and she situated her movement where Harry's hand brushed against her. She wanted to see how much she could escalate this but unfortunately there was something else that caught Jean's attention.

She heard something down in the depths of the dam, and a couple of the workers backed off.

"Harry, there's something down in the dam," Jean whispered to him.

Harry knew it, he heard something. It was dull blaring sound. He recognized the type of alarm. Jean slid off of his lap so Harry could lurch forward.

The blaring sound grew with increasing loudness and he could see one of the dam workers collapse when he touched the wall. It was almost like that something shocked him through the cracks.

Harry flashed over and pulled the worker away.

"He'll be okay, he's just stunned, we got to divert them away from the dam," Harry said quickly.

Jean nodded and decided to try her part. She planted some thoughts in the minds of the people there.

'_It's lunch time, and you will have to go home because you don't have the right tools to repair the dam,' _Jean thought to them.

The workers lurched off with the suggestions planted in the back of their minds. They all staggered away and Harry's eyes flashed over to Jean's.

"Nice one," Harry told her and Jean smiled.

"I do try," she told him.

Jean leaned forward to focus on the distress signal coming from the other side. Harry grabbed her hand and shook his head.

He analyzed the crack on the other end of the dam and knew what he needed to do. He needed to split the dam open and fish out whatever was inside out.

"We got to work quickly," Harry said, and it was now that he got a text message from his mother.

**Harry,**

**Something dangerous in the Dam, close by the Manor.**

**Mom.**

Harry responded with a text message of his own.

**I know.**

He performed the charms that would divert the water flow safely away. With that done, he could safely break open the dam.

**To Be Continued On September 28th, 2014. **

_It's time for a brand new spanking Marvel/DC crossover. Featuring Harry Potter. _

_Harry becomes the Sorcerer Supreme. I'm sure some people would have liked to see the training. How do I put this nicely? I find training scenes to be about as enticing as watching grass grow. Unless they're training that leads into a lemon._

_And if you want to see a Harry/Doctor Strange lemon that you should likely find a different fanfiction writer than myself. I would ask who would want to read such a thing, but there's all sorts on the Internet. _

_There is an on screen collective that's smaller than normal(especially by my standards). I stress on screen, because there's a lot more going on that's beyond the scope of the twenty five chapter story that I'm trying to tell. Kara(who will be in every story, deal with it) and Jean are obviously the ones, but I'll keep the others under my hat. _

_See you in the next chapter on this adventure. If you like it, that's great. If you don't….meh, no sleep lost. _


	2. Gift from the Stars

**Chapter Two: Gift from the Stars. **

The presence of this ship caught Jean completely off guard. What was more was that she was pretty sure that Harry was caught off guard with this ship. She nudged him slightly and brought him out of the stupor that he forced himself into.

It was obvious that he was caught off guard by the presence of the ship that was there.

"Harry?" Jean asked in a tentative voice. When she was sure that Harry's full attention was on her, she spoke. "Do you have the slightest idea why some kind of ship would be down here?"

Harry shook his head in negative. He grew up around this area; he must have been down by this place a dozen times. He didn't have a slightest clue about a ship ever being down here. Something must have happened.

He slid down by the area of the damn and analyzed the crack. He could feel the energy pulsing out.

"The Earthquake brought the ship out of stasis," Harry concluded, a frown slowly crossing his face. He pushed his finger up and down the crack, slowly analyzing it.

"So, wait, you're telling me that the ship was…..wait that's what you're telling me, isn't it?" Jean asked and she felt herself blown completely away. She shook her head and cleared her thoughts. "You're telling me that there was a ship down here and it was just hiding from everyone?"

Harry smiled. "Maybe it was hiding. Maybe the components were so damaged that some kind of failsafe on the ship enacted to keep the person inside safe."

He didn't really know. There was something down here. The wall was built here many years ago. It shouldn't have been that hard to find something that was missing for this long.

Harry could hear someone approach at the speed of light. He was pretty sure that she heard the dull alarm hum of the ship underneath the dam as well.

A dark haired youth a few years younger than Harry skidded to stop next to him. Her bright blue eyes shined in confusion. She wore a black tank top and a red jacket, along with a pair of jean shorts. She had a full figured body and was the pinnacle of health.

Especially for someone who technically died not too long ago.

Her name was Claire Kent, but she was born something else. She was born Clara Jor-El and sent to Earth extremely early on. She arrived in a meteor shower that rained down many years ago. She was found in a field by Jonathan and Martha Kent, although her adopted father died when she was very young.

Harry acknowledge her presence, and gave her a stern look.

"Claire, you really shouldn't be out here now after nearly dying," Harry said to the girl.

Jean nearly snorted. Only Harry could say that statement with a straight face and act like it was not out of the ordinary.

Claire put her hands on her hips and firmly looked at Harry. "I heard the hum…..I wanted to make sure that everyone was okay."

The two of them stared each other down and there was a long moment where both of them kept their lingering gaze on each other. It was hard to tell what was going to happen next with them.

"There's a Kryptonian ship down there, you know," Harry told her.

Claire suddenly looked gobsmacked. Words failed the young dark haired farm girl who just happened to be an alien.

"That….that would explain it," she choked out, having to entangle her tongue. "That would explain why the alarm assaulted my eardrums."

Harry nodded in response and he saw the pieces of Kryptonite lingering at the bottom of the river. Claire cringed in response.

It had been a very long time since she had that particular problem with dealing with that mineral. It didn't affect her as much. The memories of the trouble that it caused her in the long and distant past caused her to cringe.

Jean touched her hand to the edge of the wall and she could feel the thoughts that pulsed into her mind.

'_Help,' _a faint mental whisper said, ensnaring its way into Jean's mind.

Harry could hear it as well and Claire could hear it when Jean linked their minds up.

"So, there is someone down there," Claire said and she edged over to figure out what she needed to do.

Harry shook his head. "We don't know if we're dealing with an unstable vessel or not. Trying to remove it without taking the proper safeguards could flood the entire city or worse"

Claire frowned, she didn't even think of that even if it should have been the most obvious thing in her mind. Her eyes fixated on the vessel down beneath her.

"We can't just leave her down there, can we?" Claire asked and Harry shook his head.

"We can't and we won't," Harry said firmly.

Another tremble of the alarm echoed and Harry added something.

"Not to mention that any of the more unsavory forces getting their hands on this ship," Harry said trailing off and he added again when it came to his mind. "Not to mention some of the more savory forces."

Harry put up the charms around the area to keep people from getting in here. Well the people who weren't in his best interests to nose around. He knew that he couldn't hold things together forever, but he could try.

He hoped that he could try at least. Harry's finger trailed over the crack again and he closed his eyes.

One wrong jolt of magic could crack the dam open or worse overload the energy core of that ship . He had to treat this wall and the ship like it was a small infant. Any rough treatment of it would cause something to break.

"He knows what he's doing," a voice said and Claire and Jean turned around to see Lily Evans having appeared in a blink of an eye.

* * *

><p>The moment Lily found out about this, she felt the need to haul her ass down there to deal with it. Carol said that she would divert the attention of others away the best she could. That might only be a temporary measure at best. Lily wouldn't be as naïve to think that Carol would be able to keep them held together.<p>

"SWORD knows, don't they?" Claire asked, no sooner did she see Lily join her.

Lily focused on her son's careful extraction of the ship. She nodded in response.

"SWORD knows, SHIELD knows, pretty much anyone good or bad might know at this point," Lily added and she really wished that she could have a time table here of when they could expect someone showing up.

She should assume that it would be soon. Thankfully they were forewarned.

Harry worked his magic. That was the best that they could hope for. Lily saw the ship covered with slime and muck.

"All of the power must have diverted to keeping the cargo safe," Claire muttered underneath her breath. "You know, because these ships have sensors to keep them really clean."

Lily nodded, she was well aware of Kryptonian technology. It was an amazing piece of architecture. They had some real pride in their vessels. They were among the most magnificent in the universe from what Lily saw. Not that there wasn't a lot of competition.

"Okay, I've got the ship out and it's hanging on by a thread," Harry told her. "With all of the Kryptonite down here, if these shields failed, it could kill a person."

Lily was about to ask if her son exaggerated, but he knew better.

"We need to get the Kryptonite out of there, before some nutcase uses it in their latest super soldier cocktail," Harry added to his mother.

Lily nodded in response. "Leave it to me."

Claire was glad that they have preemptively dodged a bullet with that one. She had too many bad memories taking on the meteor freak of the week when she was growing up.

"We're going to get the ship out of here," Harry added, when he stabilized it. He diverted as much power as the ship had left back to the stasis chamber. "Even if it was Kryptonian, it wouldn't be a good idea to leave it lying around."

"Yeah, there's AIM, Cadmus, HYDRA, Doom, Sinister, Osborn, the League of Shadows, just to name a few," Jean rattled off and she was sure that there was even more. That was just off of the top of her head.

"Not to mention SHIELD doesn't have a one hundred percent success rate with the most savory people in the world," Lily added.

It was true. There was a common checkbox ticked on the super villain resume of any felon and it was the fact that they were once a SHIELD agent.

"Well, we know that we're not going to leave this ship lying around," Jean answered. She drew out her breath. "So where are we going to put it….."

"The Castle would be a nice place," Lily added, but Harry and Claire made a decision.

"The Castle would be good, but I think that I've got a better place," Claire said and she nodded a faded family crest on the side of the ship.

She couldn't completely make it out with pinpoint precision. If her hunch was right though, it would be better to open the ship up at a place.

"So, are we going to take it to the Fortress?" Harry asked her.

Claire almost could see through the walls of the ship. It had a light layer of lead through it. Why they would add that? It seemed like a design flaw in the ship.

"Yes, we'll take it to the Fortress," Claire confirmed. "If it's not a good person out there, we have the Phantom Zone portal ready to go."

Claire didn't want to go down that road, even if it was necessary. She wouldn't wish the Phantom Zone on her worst enemy and she had quite a few of them. Likely an entire wing full of time at Belle Reve who wanted to kill her or worse.

"Well let's hope that we don't have to go there," Harry said to her and he grabbed her hand.

Claire really hoped that she didn't have to go there either. She was so sick and tired of every other survivor from Krypton, save one, trying to kill her. It was starting to become a recurring trait.

"I'll see what I can do delay them," Lily said, nervously checking her son's charm work. They were good but you couldn't be too careful. "But you know Fury."

"Yes," Harry agreed tensely. "I know Fury."

There was sometimes where he wished that he didn't but he did know Fury.

"So how are you feeling after your ordeal?" Lily asked Claire.

"Well, it took a while for me to come back from it," Claire said in a nonchalant voice. "Dying is surreal but at least I took that monster down with me."

Lily hoped that Claire was right about taking the monster down with her. The aptly named Doomsday wiped out pretty much everyone in his path. It was pure luck that she managed to do what she did.

"Still wish that I would have been there," Harry told her.

Claire placed her hands on her hips and sighed. "It isn't your fault. You needed to prepare for the trials of Sorcerer Supreme. You can't babysit me every single hour of the day, you know."

Harry knew, but it didn't stop him from wishing that he could have done even more to help.

He opened a portal and with Claire and Jean's assistance, the ship was hauled towards the portal. Before they left, Harry fixed the damage that he caused to the dam. He was sure that the workmen would be surprised that the dam was not only undamaged but new as ever.

It was off from the warmth of Smallville into the cold of the Arctic.

* * *

><p>"Your father is not a good interior decorator," Jean commented to Claire the second they arrived at the Fortress.<p>

"Jor-El…well he did the best we could," Claire said. She conceded that Jean had a point.

The magnificent palace looked imposing with crystals jutting out from every direction. They glimmered with power. The gates opened in reaction for Claire when she entered.

"Beside his presence has been limited from the Fortress anyway, even if his legacy lives on," Claire said, with a shadow of a smile.

"Can't deny that the man knew about a lot though," Harry said and Claire shrugged.

"Not denying that, but you can still be smart and make idiotic decisions," Claire said with a smile.

Harry wasn't going to deny that. To say that he made the perfect decision every time would be a folly. That being said, they walked past the gates, into a more warmth area. A roaring fire rumbled before them, somehow burning despite the intense cold.

Jean appreciated the heat, even though she bundled up. Or rather Harry bundled her up when they got here. Her eyes traveled down the hallways and she saw a large bed over to the side. A decked out bathroom area could be seen as well, with a heated toilet and showers that pumped warm water into the Fortress.

A miniature kitchen area with real comfortable furniture was the final thing they could see before they entered the main part of the Chamber.

"I see you made some modifications," Harry said to Claire.

"Well, I had some help," Claire responded sheepishly with a shrug.

"Still it gives the place a lot more life," Harry prompted.

That was true, Claire thought that if she came back to life, she should have given her Fortress some life as well. The inner most chamber was cold and sterile as always even though the crystals were modified to give some additional warmth.

It might have not been the most ideal solution in the world. Claire lead Jean and Harry inside the Chamber.

"Welcome back, Clara."

A bright light appeared in the Fortress and the three dimensional image of a very beautiful woman popped out to face them. She resembled Claire to a tee. The only different was that she had blonde hair as opposed to jet black. It was obvious to anyone who could see where she got her looks after all.

"Mother, it is good to see you again," Claire said with a smile. "You have retrieved the ship that I have sent you."

Lara nodded in confirmation. "Yes, Clara, I have retrieved the ship. You were right to send it here. I didn't even know that she made the trip to Earth. The defenses on that ship must have been so accurate that no one could pick her up. She was well hidden indeed."

Lara wouldn't deny that was a good thing that no one picked her up. It was a good thing that her daughter and her friends found the ship when they did. Otherwise there would be problems.

"I think that it was good that we were in the right place at the right time," Harry told Lara. "And it's good to see you again."

Lara smiled. "It's good to see you Harry, you too as well Jean, and congratulations on passing your trials Harry."

Harry smiled, he couldn't help but feel pleased with himself. It was an accomplishment that was worth it.

He waited to see what Lara had to say when she looked over the ship. The woman's lips curled into a momentary frown.

"The ship may be beyond repair," Lara added and she became business like as usual. "Some of the components could be salvaged. If she built this ship, then she wanted to ensure that her daughter or anyone else had the safest passage from the planet."

It was then that Harry got a brief message from his mother. It pretty much confirmed everything that he thought.

"Looks like that we got the ship out of there just in time, SHIELD agents are at the dam, and there were agents of AIM that cleared out just before they arrived," Harry said.

Claire sighed. "Boy, do they ever work fast."

Harry agreed with Claire, sometimes they did work fast.

"So are we dealing with a friendly visitor?" Harry asked.

"She did seem very distressed," Jean imputed and the haunting echoes of that thought still crept into her mind.

Bright light bathed the ship. Underneath the mess and muck, they could see a sleek silvery surface, with various Kryptonian writing over it. One of the most prominent letters was the silver S in a shield. It was the family crest to the House of El.

"She would be very distressed, and you just barely caught this in time," Lara commented grimly. All sets of eyes went towards her. "Her ship's shields faded and the Kryptonite radiation would have seeped in. That level of radiation could kill anyone within moments if they're not shielded properly. It doesn't matter if they were Kryptonian or not."

Lara already prepared another shield for this one. The shields were extremely difficult to make the first time even if she had the technology and knowledge. With Lily and Harry helping her, it was a piece of cake.

"I think that Gwen will be disappointed that she's out of town," Claire commented with a grin on her face.

"Any more or any less than Chloe?" Harry asked Claire.

Claire frowned. "Actually I think that Lois might be more upset that she missed out on this. Given that would be the scoop of the century. No matter how dangerous it is. And you know she thinks that she's slacking off if I didn't have to save her from certain death at least three times a week."

Harry laughed. That was one of those situations where if you snoozed, you lost and someone lost big time.

Lara prepared to deliver the multiple step process of getting the ship open. She might need to use yellow sunlight stimulation to jump start the girl's vitals. She lapsed in a catatonic state after that one panicked thought.

She was a doctor, so she was used to patience and a steady hand in grave situations. The power of the crystals allowed her to make an incision into the ship and slowly pry it open. This had to be done without damaging the precious cargo inside which was most important thing.

* * *

><p>Lily was certain that she was going to get a million questions. She put up monitoring charms to see when SHIELD would show up.<p>

If Fury found out, he would likely chew Lily out about it. If he did that, then Lily had some material to counter him. Smallville was supposed to be under her jurisdiction and by extension Harry's. That was the agreement they made a long time ago. There were too many dangerous threats that SHIELD could upset the applecart regarding if Harry or Lily didn't have a direct hand.

"Yes, Maria," Lily said when she got a communication link. "Oh, now Fury wants to talk to me, does he?"

Lily mentally counted to ten when she returned to her office at SWORD. She knew that Carol would want to talk to her about this. She knew little more than the fact that this was a Kryptonian ship and the components came close to failing.

She would head down to the Fortress right after she had this discussion and it would be quite the discussion.

"Fury, this is Agent Evans, what do you need?" Lily asked in her cool and calm tone.

"I'm certain you know that SHIELD got a distress signal down by the area of Smallville," Fury said.

"And when you got down there, you couldn't find anything, could you?" Lily asked, her voice calm and crisp.

It was a battle of wills between two very strong tempered people. Something had to give but the question was of what. What had to give? They would find out shortly.

"By the time we got down there, we couldn't find anything, the trail gone cold," Fury said. "AIM found out as well."

"Do you think that AIM took whatever was down there?" Lily asked.

"AIM didn't find it either, and I know that there has been a lot of weird things going down there, especially regarding that Doomsday incident," Fury said.

"All of your SHIELD agents returned intact after that little mission," Lily replied, keeping calm and cool.

"Yes, because you teleported them off," Fury countered hotly.

"I'm going to be honest with you, no one would have been able to take down Doomsday," Lily said and she paused. "Maybe the Avengers might have been able to do so if they weren't trapped in another realm."

Lily actually shuddered at the thought of property damage between a battle between Hulk and Doomsday. Now that would be a horrifying thought.

"You know what happened the ship, don't you?" Fury asked her.

Direct and to the point, Lily almost would have liked that if she wasn't so annoyed on sheer principle.

"Sorry, Fury, I think we might have a bad connection," Lily said.

She couldn't keep a straight face because she could see Fury getting worked up so much that it amused her.

"I didn't take the ship out of there though, if that's what you're wondering," Lily said, and she was being truthful.

She might have given her son the head's up to take the ship out of there. She might have watched her son take the ship out of there. But Lily Evans didn't take the ship out of there. Her hands didn't touch the ship. Magic that was performed from her person never touched the ship. She was being completely truthful.

Lily peered over her shoulder for a brief second, seeing someone lean against the wall, a thinly veiled amused expression on her face.

"You know, it's really amusing when you realize that Fury takes things way too seriously," Carol said and she stepped inside.

Lily would have been amused if she didn't know that Fury was never going to let this one go.

"I know that he knows and I know that I know that he knows, but we both know that there's nothing that he can do about it," Lily said.

"Just don't let it get to your head," Carol said with a smile. "Guess I didn't hold them off for too long."

Lily wasn't going to say that, it was a brilliant bit of misdirection even though it only gave them a half of an hour of go time.

"I wouldn't say that Carol, you did pretty well," Lily confirmed to her and Carol nodded.

She decided to lean in and ask the question. Her curiosity needed to be indulged even though she might live to regret what she said.

"So, Harry was the one that got it out of there, didn't he?"

Lily nodded in affirmation. Carol opened her mouth to ask further questions. Lily decided that it would be best to cut her off.

"The less you know, the better off that you'll be," Lily told Carol.

Carol agreed that was for the best. It would be better to deny you knew things if you didn't know things. She looked at the scanners. Other than that one glitch, all was quiet in the grand scheme of the universe. The forecast for the Earth today appeared to clear with no chance of a sudden alien invasion.

Most people would have been happy about that. Carol disagreed. Something brewed but she didn't know what.

She sighed and pulled out two chairs for both her and Lily. She took a chair to the left and Lily took the one to the right.

"Friend or foe?" Carol asked.

"Hopefully friend, because we've had enough hostile alien invaders from Krypton," Lily added with a shudder.

Carol shook her head. "You know for a race that's most extinct, there does seem to be a lot of them left out there. And most of them want to kill the planet's last daughter."

Lily laughed, she would have to agree with that. She looked around nervously for a second.

"I'm pretty sure that it's safe around here, I know you disable anything that could be tracked when you come in here," Carol said. "So how is Harry doing? It's been a while since the two of us have gotten together."

Lily smiled knowingly. "He's overseeing the extraction process…and I'm sure that he'll be fighting all kinds of threats whose names no one could ever pronounce without spraining their tongue."

Carol amused herself with some of those names. Doctor Strange had a rogue's gallery that was fitting of his name. They were completely and totally out to lunch.

She looked towards the scanner one more time. All was extremely quiet on the Western front.

That normally meant that something was about to happen. She crossed her fingers that it wouldn't.

* * *

><p>Claire, Harry, and Jean waited for the extraction process to be completed down in the Fortress. The top half of the ship was opened.<p>

"Preparing the cargo for extraction," Lara said and a beam of light shot out to open up the stasis chamber.

There was someone inside and it wasn't a raging monster which seemed extremely surprising. An extremely attractive and naked blonde girl was removed from the ship.

Her head flipped from one side to the other. Harry saw that she had elegant beauty, with golden blonde hair that shimmered in the light. Her cheekbones remained soft and she had a slender neck. Round breasts that would be the envy of any girl topped off a picture figure with extremely elegant curves. Her tight little ass and long legs, along with perfect feet added to the nice picture.

Claire's eyes watched her progress as well, as the table was set up. The blonde rested on the table back first.

"Preparing for the solar infusion," Lara said.

The girl lapsed into a catatonic state, although Jean could hear a few base thoughts. If she delved even deeper into the girl's mind, she might have heard even more. The horror and the panic of being somewhat aware that there was a world around you but not being able to experience it was mortifying.

Jean frowned, she got a slight headache. It visited her for a second and then it was gone. She could have sworn that she heard several voices overlapped at once.

She should only hear less than a handful of thoughts. Her powers were not based off of proximity, the furthest she was able to hear someone's thoughts was about three states over. They were out in the middle of nowhere.

Harry's eyes were on her and Jean shrugged. She reached over and placed her hand gently on his and squeezed it to reassure him that everyone was okay. Harry agreed that everything was okay, at least for now.

"Continuing the next phase of the process," Lara said and she turned to the group in the Fortress. "Please stand back. I don't want any of you to get hurt by any potential power backwash."

Jean, Harry, and Claire all stepped back. A silver shield appeared on either side of them, for added protection.

The crystals turned and bombarded the young girl with a blast of yellow sunlight. Her body heated up on the table and the blinding warmth filled the Fortress.

'_I think it might be working,' _Jean thought with a smile on her face.

'_Yeah, I agree,' _Claire thought, she could really feel something.

'_Did either of you ever doubt that it would work?' _Harry asked both Jean and Claire.

Both girls shook their heads, they didn't really have any doubt that it would work. Lara did her thing to scan the girl all over again.

The vital signs she had popped up on the door and was rather weak. Her power levels slowly climbed up and Lara was encouraged by the process. The stasis field kept her in the ship for all of these years.

Lara was certain that this ship followed Clara's off of the planet, but a miscalculation in direction caused the ship to be thrown off course. It was thrown into where the dam was and buried underneath debris. Eventually the wall was built over it.

At least that was her theory, Lara could be wrong, and she was known to have been wrong before. Eyes popped back over towards the vital signs and they continued to glow in front of her face. The obvious encouraging signs caused Lara's excitement to mount.

A second dose of the simulated yellow solar radiation brought her further out of it. Her fingers rose up and started to twitch briefly.

Jean made the mistake of keeping her mind open too much. She saw the fear in this girl's eyes when she was on a ship. The ship escaped the planet just as the towers fell. The planet burst open.

The redhead heard the screams of millions on the planet. Harry's arm tightened around her waist and that eased her tensions slightly. It didn't ease here completely.

'_It's awful,' _Jean thought and there was no other way to stop it.

The vitals spiked up where a moderately powered Kryptonian underneath the yellow sun should be. Her body converted her solar reserves into nourishment that replenished her body. Whilst it wasn't as good as food, it would do until she was fed.

Harry watched her and her body shifted against the table.

"Clara, it's time for you to meet her," Lara whispered and the barrier faded straight down.

Claire took a tentative step on through and passed through the gate. Her hands twitched when she tried to stand up straight.

"Your cousin Kara, from Krypton," Lara said and there was jubilation that filled through her voice.

Claire felt relief because they assumed that Kara died with the rest of them on Krypton. The dark haired girl placed her hand on her cousin's hair and slowly ran down it. She didn't quite wake up yet.

Spoke too soon as a pair of bright blue eyes opened. Confusion swam around them. The first thing she saw was Claire.

The blonde looked at Claire with an extremely confused. "Aunt Lara?"

Then she realized that Aunt Lara didn't have dark hair, unless she changed it. Kara Zor-El felt a throbbing motion going through her head and she was confused as anyone what was going on here.

"What in the name of Rao is going on here?" Kara asked.

Claire prepared for an explanation. "My name is Clara, I'm your cousin."

* * *

><p><strong>To Be Continued On September 30<strong>**th**** 2014. **

**So yes, we've got Claire Kent in this story, which is going to be the standard for any future stories that don't have Clark/Kal-El as a male lead. If you want a visual representation, just Google Image search Megan Fox Supergirl and you'll get a good enough idea. **

**Lily doesn't take being told what to do too kindly, does she? Harry got it from somewhere. **

**Chronically speaking, this is the first time posting wise that anyone reading my stories has seen the slightly modified Fortress of Solitude. Writing wise, it actually made it's debut in Another Life. But if I have to explain the messed up way I juggle all of the projects that I do, we'll be here all day. All I'm going to say I'm writing about half of what I'm posting currently and leave it at that. **

**Kara's awake and things are getting rolling. **

**See you this Tuesday. **


	3. Check Up

**Chapter Three: Check Up. **

Lara sensed her niece got extremely confused and she would be lying if she said that she blamed the girl. It was really hard not to be confused in the state that she was in. She had been in stasis for an extremely long time. She made her presence felt.

"Wait, Lara, you're an AI?" Kara asked her and Lara nodded. Her eyes went over to the girl that resembled Lara, only with darker hair. Then she looked back to the Lara that shimmered in the light. Her eyes fixated on the crystals.

Certainly a holographic projection and judging by the way that she could reach out and touch the person, very real.

"Yes, Kara, I am," she told the girl. She hoped that her niece wouldn't be too shell shocked regarding what happened. "Are you okay? What do you remember?"

Kara frowned, that was actually a pretty good question and one she wished that she had something resembling an answer to. The blonde furiously racked her brain in an attempt to get some answers. What did she remember?

Some faint recollections returned to her mind and she shook her head. It was horrifying to remember this. She had to do it otherwise she wouldn't have any peace of mind.

"I…..I remember bits and pieces of what happened," Kara admitted nervously. "The war with him was over, and he was banished, along with his followers. The Counsel seized the Phantom Zone construct for their own purposes, and Jor-El was taken in for questioning about what happened…..she was born…..where is she?"

Kara's body became extremely rigid when it all hit her. The girl was in a state of shock. Everything hit her completely at once. All of the stress, all of the tragedy, all of the turmoil, just everything washed over her quickly.

Harry sensed how nervous she was getting and he reached forward. His strong hand clenched hers.

"Where is she?" Kara asked, a bit gentle tone. She looked towards this young man. The blonde focused on him for the first time. Although she didn't know why she didn't notice him. Must have been really frazzled. "Who are…"

"Harry, Harry Evans," Harry whispered to her, allowing her to grab his hand. "I was the one that found you in your ship, at the bottom of the down, well I had some help, Jean and Claire helped me as well."

Claire knew that they would have to tell her pretty soon, especially now that Kara slowly began to freak out.

"I followed her to Earth, I was going to make sure she got where she needed to be okay, and to look over her," Kara said in exasperation, squeezing his hand tightly. "Your daughter, Clara…"

"I think she turned out alright," Claire said and Kara's eyes snapped over towards the dark haired female that spoke. The one that she originally thought was Lara.

She was about to ask how Claire could have known. Suddenly it hit her. She couldn't have been so dense. That was a true blonde moment, as the humans might have said.

The blonde's mouth curled into a knowing smile. She weakly picked herself up. Kara's hand still intertwined with Harry's.

Harry held onto her hand to make sure she didn't fall over. She didn't and she staggered over. Her arms fell around Claire in a tight embrace.

"Clara, I'm glad to see that you're okay," Kara said, and she shook her head.

"Well, we need to make sure that you're okay, okay?" Claire asked her.

Kara nodded, she needed that as well. She had been down there in the ship. More bits and pieces came back to her in a flash in her mind. Her head nearly throbbed at the thought of what she remembered. The radiation poured into the ship and if she had been down there for too much longer, she wouldn't make it.

She shivered and this young man held her hand tighter.

"They're gone, Jor-El and my mother, they were both right," Kara said, and it came back to her what happened to her mother as well.

She was in the city when it disappeared. Kara sighed long and hard, when she recalled that. Countless lives perished. Planets don't normally blow up.

This one did, oh this one did.

"Be strong," Harry whispered in her ear and Kara nodded.

"Thank you," Kara said, feeling the warmth course through her body when he squeezed her hand.

She was a survivor. She was one of the few children to be born through a natural birth on Krypton. That was considered a sin by the scientifically minded council. Children were supposed to be grown in tubes, to be engineered through perfect matches. They were born to serve a purpose and fulfill a role in society. It was mapped out what they would do from cradle to the grave.

Alura challenged that thinking. Kryptonians on their home planet didn't have that long of a life span. Between fifty or sixty years tended to be a high lifespan amount the fittest of them all. The so called perfect matches caused them to perform a certain task and once they outlived their usefulness, their life span could be measured in days.

Her mother challenged that thinking and Kara was the result of it. Alura was matched with Zor-El. The process was set up where both of their DNA would be extracted. They would be combined and incubated through the entire cycle of pregnancy. Alura double crossed Zor-El and used her family's connections to erase the process.

Kara wasn't sure how she managed the natural pregnancy. She couldn't image Zor-El consenting to sleep with her, because sex was a taboo on Krypton. Lesser races used sexual intercourse to conceive, so says the council.

The scientific process may have led to their destruction.

All Kara knew was Alura had to go off planet to have her to the colony of Argo which allowed for more enlightened thinking. They were Kryptonians that had broken away centuries ago because of a falling out with the Council. It was more peaceful than the falling out that other splinter groups had.

That being said, how healthy and strong Kara was showed that the natural way would have been better for a long term. Her mother and Lara made a pact to change the old ways of thinking before Krypton met its demise. There was only one problem. It was too late.

"They're gone, all of them are gone," Kara said, shivering.

"But, we're still here," Claire said, giving Harry a significant look.

Kara took a look into Harry's eyes for a brief second. There was something about them that seemed familiar. She couldn't really place exactly what in her state of mind.

"Will it really be okay?" Kara asked, and she nervously chewed down on her lip. She almost drew blood when she did so.

She didn't quite have the invulnerability from the yellow sun yet.

"We'll check you up," Lara said and she motioned for Claire, Harry, and Jean to leave

Kara almost wished that they didn't. She felt an Arctic chill when Harry retracted his hand from hers.

Harry got a text message that jarred him out of his thoughts.

**Fury wants to speak with you. Says it's urgent.**

Harry gave a long sigh, of course it was. He better go and see what Fury had to say.

"I'll be back, something has come up," Harry told the group.

Kara felt a chilling disappointment go through her body at the fact that Harry had to go. She understood though.

* * *

><p>Harry Potter made his way to meet with Nick Fury. That was always a meeting that proved to be extremely enlightening for both of them.<p>

He wasn't going to insult Fury's intelligence. He was going to tell him what was what and let him stew about it.

Fury walked towards Harry. One eagle eye fixed on Harry's. The young man didn't blink. Neither did Fury. It was a battle of wills and a battle of who would speak up first.

"So?" Fury asked.

"Are you going to tell me why I'm here or are you going to make me tell you?" Harry countered.

Anyone who walked by would have felt a full shudder escape through their bodies. The stubborn battle of wills continued between these two men.

"You know why you're here, Potter," Fury said.

Harry snorted. He looked amused because he was. "Well, Fury, I might have done at least three things today that could have got your panties in a snit, so you're going to have to help me narrow it down to the most direct reason."

"It's the ship, you know it was there in Smallville, and it was gone before we even showed up," Fury said.

"The ship, isn't one of your 8-9-4s," Harry said, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"0-8-4s!" Fury corrected him.

"Well, it isn't," Harry responded to him.

Fury knew that he wasn't going win this battle.

"Smallville is….."

"I know you know that there are a lot of weird things going on in Smallville, trust me, when radioactive waste drops from the sky, you're going to get a lot of oddities," Harry said, almost as if he was discussing the birds and the bees.

"We both know that radioactive waste wasn't the only thing that dropped from the sky," Fury snapped back.

"What SHIELD knows and what they're going to find out are two entirely different things," Harry said to Fury. He almost was face to face with Fury but he pulled away. "I'm going to be honest with you, I got the ship out of there. And it was a good thing that I got the ship out of there. You know who was nosing around the area, don't you?"

There was no use in hiding that information especially when Harry.

"AIM," Fury grumbled.

Harry looked smug.

"And they arrived before you did, so if I wasn't there to act, we'd have some nutcase with a big head and his army of bee keepers with alien technology that could obliterate small villages," Harry informed Fury.

"The ship…..it's that dangerous," Fury said and then he decided to go for the throat with another word. "Or is it the person on it that's dangerous?"

Harry knew that this was going to be a long meeting even before he set out to have it. Nick Fury meant well a lot of the time. Most of the time at least, he didn't know how to leave well enough alone.

"Anyone can be dangerous if provoked by people who think that they mean well," Harry said, and he decided to go for the throat this time. "Especially by people who spend most of their time creating their own monsters."

Fury didn't blink. A lot of SHIELD's enemies had the "former SHIELD agent" check box ticked in their resume.

"How many of the meteor infected did you push into the arms of people who would use them and throw them away?" Harry asked Fury.

Fury changed the subject. "You jump down the rabbit hole into the land of Oz for almost a year, and no one knows where you are. And then you come back and not even a day later you stir up shit"

"It's what I do," Harry told him. "And trust me, I didn't completely disappear."

"SHIELD lost track of your whereabouts for that long," Fury argued with him.

"The people who I wanted to know where I was, they knew where I was," Harry said. "No offense, but I don't want all of SHIELD knowing how many times I use the restroom. So excuse me if I have my secrets."

"Someone like you could be a valuable asset, if you learn a little respect," Fury grumbled.

Harry figured that they were eventually going to come around to that conversation.

"Here's the thing, I have a real problem following authority, always have, always will," Harry said. "Especially when said authority compromises my principles, but never mind that. If you must know, the person on the ship was taken under my care. Her ship components are fried. There was nothing of value left inside other than the occupant."

"I don't like this," Fury said.

"I wasn't asking you to like it," Harry said, and there was an obvious "asshole" hanging on the tip of his tongue. He held it off though.

Harry Evans was capable of restraint, most of the time. This was one of the times where he held his back.

"I see that the Blur is back in business," Fury said to him. Harry was noncommittal in his answer. "Or is she going underneath a different name?"

"She's resting because dying took a lot out of her," Harry dead panned. Then he swiftly changed the subject. "The ship is fine, the person who is in it is currently with someone I trust. And I'd keep an eye on AIM because they're up to something."

Harry had his own problem.

"Stark wanted to ask you if you had any interest of re-joining the Avengers," Fury said.

Harry paused and looked over his shoulder.

"Stark has my number if he ever needs to contact me," Harry said. "I'm not exactly hard to find."

Fury opened his mouth to say something else, but as quickly as he arrived, Harry Potter vanished into the night.

That was one of the most annoying qualities of him. He disappeared as quickly as he arrived and left Fury hanging.

Maria Hill ducked her head behind the corner in amusement. She warned Fury that he wouldn't get very far with this line of questioning.

Some people just had to learn the hard way.

* * *

><p>Harry Potter knew that dealing with Nick Fury always would leave him extremely agitated. He got a phone call and he knew who this was from.<p>

"Hi, Gwen, how are you doing?" Harry asked the person over the phone.

He knew that she would be calling, he just didn't know when she would be calling.

"I'm doing fine, but…I didn't know that you got back from your training," Gwen said on the other end of the phone.

"Youngest Sorcerer Supreme in history," Harry said, trying not to sound too entirely smug about the situation.

Gwen snickered. "We're really master of the obvious today, is the next thing that you're going to tell me is that Jameson has a loud mouth?"

Harry got her point well and clear.

"You're in quite the mood today," Harry said to her. "What's up?"

"Oh, I'm enjoying the scenes over here, and I figured I'd check in with a couple of people on the other side to see what's happening," Gwen said over the phone. "It's a sad state with those people, but you already knew that."

"Could you change the subject, I don't want to talk about them," Harry said. To even think about them, even if his interactions with them were limited caused him to want to punch someone.

At least twenty five percent of the problems and fires that the Sorcerer Supreme had to put out was an indirect result of the wand wavers. Granted that might have seemed like a small number, so Harry was willing to let the live their lives. They wouldn't be around that much longer at the rate they were dying out.

"Very well," Gwen said. She understood, she really did understand how much he didn't want to talk about that.

"I really appreciate it," Harry informed her and he pinched the bridge of his nose to allow a long sigh to escape from his mouth.

"I've heard some really interesting rumors," Gwen said and she drew breath when Harry remained silent. "There have been some unsavory figures who were reported moving around the area of Smallville."

Harry paused and allowed Gwen to come back in with the really obvious statement.

"Even more so than usual," she concluded. "So what's the deal?"

"You've heard the rumors, you tell me," Harry replied.

Gwen wanted to headdesk. She held herself back from doing that. "There's another ship…but there's no signs of a meteor shower…..again. Wouldn't this be about the third or fourth time that happened if there was one?"

Harry had to be honest with her. "I don't know, I lost track."

He had so many other things on his mind that he couldn't keep track of the meteor showers that hit Smallville.

"No, there wasn't another meteor showers, thank Rao," Harry said, realizing how much of a long pause there was. "There was an alien ship there….or there was before it mysterious disappeared. Right before those unsavory figures got ahold of it."

"And I don't doubt that a full savory figures that could do unsavory things no doubt," Gwen said and she chose her words carefully. These cell phones were on a specials secure tower that only five people on Earth had the codes for and two of them were talking to each other. It could never hurt to be careful despite the security. "So, the ship has been moved?"

"A trustworthy person has the ship, along with the cargo inside," Harry said. "As it turns out, the cargo that was on the ship is far more valuable than the actual ship itself."

"Hmm," Gwen muttered underneath her breath.

Harry jumped on that one really quickly. "Hmm….is that what you said….hmmm?"

"Yes, that's what I said, hmm?" Gwen asked her, she got a bit of a perverse amount of enjoyment of riling up Harry. Not too much mind you, just a little bit. "If I know you, I know what the cargo is and I know why you've taken an interest of it."

Harry smiled, there were sometimes where he could be a bit predictable. Not that he minded because predictable could be a good thing. People might overlook the very obvious if they thought that you were going to do something that was out of the box.

"The Blur fan blog will be really interested to hear about this, I'm sure," Gwen said. "And kind of pissed that she wasn't invited along for the extraction of said ship"

"To be honest, it was really a last moment thing," Harry admitted.

"I know," Gwen said, sighing and repeating herself and not realizing she did. "I know. Logic might get in the way of people when they get upset about the coolness factor."

"Aren't you upset that you didn't get to see the ship?" Harry asked.

"Upset that I scheduled a vacation out of the country on the one day where you're going to unearth an alien ship," Gwen said to him. "You know, that should really teach me to take vacations. You miss all kinds of cool shit. But then what am I going to do?"

Harry laughed in amusement. "Well, you take care over there for the rest of your vacation. I don't want to hear about any international incidents."

He could almost hear Gwen pouting over the phone.

"Do you honestly have so little faith in me?" Gwen asked him.

"I was being serious," Harry said, and he made his walk around the corner so he couldn't be seen. He could teleport towards the Fortress at that point. "So, when are you getting back?"

"Barring any screw ups with my flight, I should be able to get there by Friday," Gwen said. "So, what's in the news?"

"Jameson said that Spider-Girl was a threat and a menace," Harry told her.

"Really, and I suppose the next thing you're going to tell me is some politician lied somewhere in the world about something," Gwen said in mock exasperation. "Take care Harry…"

"Enjoy the rest of your vacation," Harry said.

"I will because nothing has tried to kill me," Gwen said and she knocked on the table.

"Well, keep your eyes peeled now that you said that," Harry warned her.

Gwen sighed, it was obvious that she knew that she jinxed herself. One day she would learn to keep her mouth shut.

"Love you Harry, talk to you later," Gwen said.

"Love you too, we've got a lot to catch up on when you get back," Harry responded to her.

The call went dead and Harry took that as his cue to make his way back to the Fortress.

* * *

><p>Kara sat perfectly still and calm. She normally didn't like to get checked out by anyone. Lara was someone that she trusted.<p>

She missed Harry, but she understood why he left. She decided to focus her attention on her cousin, who she missed all that time growing up. Kara's heart ached with the thought of all that she missed.

The only thing that strengthened her and gave her clarity of thought was the fact that Lara was here for Claire. Her aunt would have not let her daughter be anything less than completely okay. And she was sure that the adopted parents Clara had would have been fine. Lara picked them out, although there was so much that could go wrong.

None of them were thinking rationally in those final days of Krypton. The civil war ravished the country and their traditional means of escape, the exit portals, had been destroyed. Kara's eyes closed when she thought of it. She recalled her last moment before she got on the ship, the towers falling, and architecture in Jax-Ur square crumbling to dust when she left the planet.

"We're almost done, just hang in there tight," Lara said and Kara felt herself shiver a little bit more. "You're in almost optimal health."

"Just almost?" Kara asked.

"A few days of a steady diet and yellow sunlight, and you'll be back to normal in no time," Lara told Kara and the blonde slid off of the table.

Claire looked at her cousin. "Maybe we should get some clothes for you?"

Kara was taken off guard by this. A slight smile spread over her face.

"Why, am I distracting you?" Kara asked, not able to help tease her cousin.

Lara smiled, Kara and Clara reminded her of herself and Alura. She wasn't sure if that was really a good thing or not.

Kara amused herself with the look on her cousin's face, but she figured that she had to get some clothes on.

"There an extra set in that dresser," Claire told her. "It should fit you."

Kara brushed past Jean and she stared at her for a second.

'_Something familiar,' _Kara thought, Jean resembled some kind of legend that she heard about one time, but she couldn't really put her finger on it.

It slowly drove her nuts to think about it. Kara looked at the drawer, looking at the underwear. She frowned and there was a sense that there were questions to be asked of her.

"And if you wanted to know, I had clothes on before I left, but they disintegrated upon entry," Kara said without missing a beat. She slipped on a red sweater and a pair of jeans. They did fit her.

It would have to do for now until the point where she could get something else on. She twirled her finger with a sigh.

"How did your clothes go, but the ship didn't?" Jean asked.

Kara frowned deeply when she racked her mind for a logical explanation.

"I don't really know," Kara admitted, and she grew red around the cheeks.

The ship knocking itself in stasis mode for so long was also a mystery to her. It was only supposed to keep her in stasis until she landed.

What she didn't intend to happen was half of the planet being brought down with her ship and Clara's as well. She really was glad her cousin was here and as healthy as she hoped Clara would be.

Kara reminded herself that if they weren't born from natural pregnancy, they might not have survived the trip even with the security measures around their ships. That was another quality of their unique Kryptonian biology that sustained them.

Alura was right this whole time about that theory. Kara would miss her mother the most out of everyone. She was her best friend in addition to her mother.

The blonde barely paid attention to what she was doing and she ran head long into Harry.

"Whoa, easy there," Harry said and she held her up.

"Oh, you're back," Kara said breathlessly, feeling his strong grip hold her upright.

"And I see that you're dressed," Harry said to her, holding her up. "Can you stand on your own?"

"Yeah, guess coming out of stasis took more out of me than I thought," Kara said and Harry lead over to a bedroom area.

"Yellow sunlight gets filtered through the Fortress naturally, except for the training area, which is red for obvious reasons," Lara remarked.

"Well it's no worse than Harry's method of training," Clara said and Harry raised an eyebrow in amusement. "You know, strap me with blue Kryptonite and throw me in with ten rounds against Wolverine."

Jean snickered at the thought of that, until Claire's gaze locked onto hers.

"You learned how to defend yourself without powers eventually, didn't you?" Harry asked her and Kara giggled when she held Harry's arm.

"Oh I did, but that's not really the point," Claire said and she could see her cousin, technically older cousin even though she was younger now, getting really cozy with Harry.

"I know a little bit about self-defense, not much, my lessons just started a few months before everything went to hell," Kara said, and she walked into the bedroom with generous assistance from Harry.

Kara saw the bed and she took in the entire room. A lump rose in her throat that she swallowed. It reminded her a bit of her room back in her home on Kandor. At least before Kandor vanished while she was visiting a friend outside of the city.

"Sorry, I can change it if you want me to," Lara offered her gently.

"No, it's okay," Kara said in a tired voice.

She sat down on the bed, with Claire sitting on her other side. Her cousin squeezed her shoulder.

"So we got the Kryptonite cleaned out?" Claire asked Harry.

"Cleaned out and decontaminated," Harry confirmed to her.

Claire let out a sigh of relief. She dealt with meteor mutants for half of her life and the last thing she wanted to do was deal with them at least once week for the next five years. It got rather tiresome after a long time.

"So, this has been an interesting day," Claire said and she could see Kara leaning over Harry's shoulder. She was about to say something to her cousin, but there was only one problem.

She drifted off to sleep, and was drooling on Harry's shoulder.

"Well, I hope that new shirt doesn't cost that much," Claire whispered in Harry's ear.

'_I'm sure Harry can wipe his ass with something like that,' _Jean chimed in, making sure to link their minds up.

'_Not exactly how I would have put it, but essentially true in principle,' _Harry thought back to Jean and she looked smug.

'_Was it just me, or did she look like she recognized me and you?' _Jean asked.

'_We're going to have to ask her about that when she was in more sound mind,' _Harry thought back to her. _'Speaking of sound mind…..'_

'_If you must know, I had another episode when she came out of the box,' _Jean thought and she gave a lengthy sigh. _'But you have to understand, it was only because I heard her thoughts that she had when she saw her home planet destroyed.'_

Harry thought that it was best to let Jean off of the hook, for now. _'Very well.'_

'_I'm telling the truth,' _Jean told him, folding her arms in frustration.

Perhaps she tried to convince herself as much as she convinced Harry.

'_I know, Jean,' _Harry thought to her.

He thought of other potential complications. Kara's alarm sent a signal to people on Earth. He really hoped that it didn't pick up to someone from the stars. Krypton had many enemies, who would like nothing better than to extinguish any survivors.

Harry made plans to deal with that when it came. He had plans for ages really. It was just a matter of survival.

* * *

><p>The Kree Empire regarded Earth as nothing more than a speck of dust in the grander universe. Seconds later they noticed a blip off in the distance.<p>

"It's a beacon, and it's Kryptonian," one of the members of the Kree whispered and he could barely contain his excitement.

It was known that a group of Kryptonians who became the Kree left the planet centuries ago. They felt that the Council held back their evolution. The Council considered them to be freaks and misfits even though they were the superior evolution of the rest of the Kryptonain race. Their technology was better at breeding the perfect soldiers than Krypton's ever was.

One could whisper that their greatest soldier was one that was born through a natural pregnancy but that was not something that the Kree thought about. It was based mostly upon propaganda and lies, even though he had his supporters within the empire.

Krypton died, and it was a happy day, but there were some who still harbored a few survivors.

"It's the mudball known as Earth," a harsh Kree stated. He clutched his fist around a giant hammer that would smash down upon anything that got in his way.

"Earth?" one of them questioned.

"Yes, it's the mudball known as Earth," another one agreed and they braced themselves for what would come next. "Grand Accuser, what should we do?"

"We will eliminate these rejects, and then punish Earth for harboring them," Ronan the Accusor said. "Supreme Intelligence, that is my recommendation, all I require is the order from you."

"Grand Accuser I accept your proposal, and recommend that any and all Kryptonian technology is seized as property of the Kree empire, and their survivors be brought to trial, along with anyone who harbors them," the Supreme Intelligence said in a robotic and detached voice.

"Thank you grand one, it will be done," Ronan said, an ugly scar on his face visible.

He had been at this game for a long time. He was barely more than a boy and a soldier in the Kree army when he receives this scar. They tried to take control of the Kryptonian colony known as Argo which had been in Kree territory.

The Kree failed on that day, and before they could plan their revenge, Krypton blew up. Any colonists that were on Argo perished thanks to the backfire, their planet freezing over.

It was a fitting end to them, Ronan had to admit. Even though he regretted not obtaining any revenge but it was always as the saying went, and it was that it was never too late.

Ronan waited for the embrace of victory to greet him. The Accuser prepared to personally lead the charge to Earth.

Krypton perished today. The last survivors would not be that way much longer.

**To Be Continued On October 2****nd****, 2014. **

* * *

><p><strong>The person who gave Ronan his scar, well his name rhymes with Pod. <strong>

**We get some interesting backstory in this chapter, or so I thought. And Harry and Fury interacting which is always a treat. **

**Yeah, Gwen! **

**The invasion begins Thursday. Be there. **


	4. Dominion Part One

**Chapter Four: Dominion Part One.**

* * *

><p>Carol Danvers sat herself in the comfortable large chair that she had in the SWORD headquarters. So far it was a quiet night. That kind of disappointed her. She thought that she drew the short straw for the super lame shift.<p>

The woman resigned herself to a simple fact. Not every night could be a winner. She leaned back in the chair and her legs crossed over themselves. The blonde tapped her foot on the ground and hummed. Giving one last sweep of the universe, Carol almost hoped to run into something, anything that would lead to her jumping into action.

This sector was good, this sector was good. Every sector was good. Everything was quiet.

Carol didn't rest too easily, when she saw a light blink on the screen. Her eyebrows rose into her forehead and she got a signal for an incoming transmission.

"That should be impossible," Carol muttered underneath her breath. "It shouldn't be coming in on this frequency."

Carol amended her thoughts. It was coming in on this frequency because it was coming in on all frequencies, even the extremely dedicated ones.

"So, you heard it, didn't you?" Lily asked, walking up behind Carol.

"So much for this being a boring night," Carol said and she cupped her hand underneath her chin with a smile.

"It could be some kind of test of some kind of alien computer system that piggy backed on our channel," Lily suggested, grasping for some kind of explanation that didn't mean they were getting hacked.

She doubted that. It was best to keep some kind of optimistic thought about everything.

"People of the Earth, stand by for a message," a rough voice said.

Carol frowned, that didn't sound like any alien test message to her. She attempted to access the frequency. There was just one issue that she had. No matter how much she tried, it couldn't be tracked. She went back to sweeping the security network and she spotted a portal opening up right around the area of Mars.

'_That's not good,' _Carol thought to herself.

Lily frowned; she didn't know what this message was. All she knew was that she was pretty sure that she wasn't going to like what was coming through over the network.

"That doesn't look like a friendly fleet either," Carol said and she sent a signal for all of the available SWORD agents to get their asses on deck double time. "Maybe we should get help from….."

"I'd imagine they already know," Lily said, she stood on pins and needles, waiting for the message to come through on the other end.

A blip, blip, blip echoed on through and Lily's frustration simmered to an entirely new level. Carol sent the signal for aid whilst she tried to track the signal.

There was no need to track them down because it looked like they were about to find them first.

"Do we have your attention?" the crude voice asked on the other end asked. "For those of you who don't know, I'm Ronan. And given that you are uneducated barbarians, you wouldn't know, so I will be happy to introduce myself. I am the grand accuser of the Kree Empire, and Earth is now under the dominion of the Kree Empire."

He said this as if there was an undisputed fact.

"Talk about someone who seems really sure of themselves," Carol said.

"He seems rather full of himself to me," Lily said and she saw the scanner read out. The barriers put up around the Earth were eradicated when the Kree blew through them.

They were good defenses. The Kree just happened to be better. They were also dummy defenses to get a good view of what they were capable of.

"Your defenses wouldn't even stop an army of space worms," Ronan commented and taunted him. "But, I suppose that we should give your proper respect for effort. It's just unfortunate that your very best will not be sufficient to stop the Kree's very best."

Carol remembered the term "Kree". It was that mysterious ship she came across. The occupant died on it but not before she acquired his powers. Or maybe the ship gave her powers, Carol didn't know. It was ambiguous to her and beyond several of the top scientific minds in the world.

"They're going to invade us, why?" Lily asked.

"The people of the Earth have harbored an extremely dangerous menace for some time," Ronan continued. "As far as the Kree is concerned, you are dangerous criminals as well. Most of these barbarians have been destroyed but at least one has been left on Earth and is living amongst you. It should be obvious how such a weak waste of life could live amongst you humans."

"You know this guy," Lily hissed underneath her breath. "I hate him already."

Carol was about to have her join the club. A loud blare echoed and she saw something hovering above the Earth.

"I don't know what that is, but it doesn't look very friendly," one of the SWORD agents said nervously.

"Where is Agent Brand?" Carol asked to them.

"She's on her way," one of the SWORD agents said in a nervous voice. She knew better than to argue with Agent Danvers because the woman can crush her like a tin can.

"She's not the only person that's on her way," Carol muttered underneath her breath.

Lily performed a diagnostic spell on the large device that hovered above the Earth. Much to her agitation she couldn't take it out from this far away without sending it crashing down on the planet and killing a load of people. That plan was out.

"I'm going to make a wild hunch, and say that the thing that they're looking for is in Smallville," Carol said.

Lily didn't even bother to answer that question. There was no need for her to answer that question. Carol got all of the answers that she needed to.

"Let's see if we can cut off the fleet. There's more than a few tricks up our sleeves still that we can use."

The Kree looked to be determined to invade the Earth and take what they thought was there's. It wouldn't be the first time that aliens invaded Earth.

The initial defenses on the outskirts of the planet were a feint to lure them into a false sense of security. The Kree's fleet was more immense than usual.

Were they really going to do a full scale invasion over a couple of people? Lily scowled deeply, that was the epitome of overkill.

She was about ready to give Harry a heads up but he beat her to the punch.

**Don't worry, I know.**

Lily was at ease slightly. Knowing was only half of the battle. There was much more to do other than that.

* * *

><p>The Fortress caught the signal before anyone else did. Lara's frown deepened when she understood the implications of it.<p>

Claire didn't like the look on her mother's face. She always looked so calm and collected. This was anything but calm and collected so to see her this rattled was unsettling to say the least. "Mother, what is it?"

"It's the Kree," Lara said, and she looked upset. Harry turned up, finally managing to safely detach Kara from him so she could sleep. Jean kept an eye on her for him.

"The Kree?" Harry asked.

"What do you mean the Kree?"

Kara made her way out of the room, roused quickly from her slumber. The blonde placed her hands on her hips.

"That wasn't covered in my training," Claire said in frustration.

"I know, but it had to be a crash course, for the reasons that we discussed, and I never thought that the Kree would come up," Lara said.

There were many ghosts from Krypton's past that felt they had cause to come back and haunt the final survivors of the planet.

"So?" Jean asked, she was lost as they all were. "What are the Kree?"

Lara knew that Kara knew some of it, but didn't know the full story. No one knew the full story. Lara planned to tell it the best that she could.

"As you know, Krypton had a few civil wars during their time. Some of them were resolved quickly. Other groups were far more fanatical about their plans to eradicate what they perceived to be unworthy blemishes on their master race."

'_A Nazi by any other name,' _Jean thought to herself, and Harry nodded in agreement.

"There was a group of Kryptonians that were different than the rest, it was a different genetic process to create them than the standard birthing matrix. There may have been DNA of other races engineered in them, which was forbidden by the Council even more so than a natural pregnancy."

Kara gave off an extremely unlady like snort. The day that there wasn't something forbidden by the Council would be a day that she didn't hear about.

"This group decided that they were stronger than normal Kryptonians, and prepared to take control of the government in a siege, only leaving a handful to be used as a DNA pool for potential breeding stock," Lara explained. "The problem was that this wasn't something that went over too well with other Kryptonians. The group evolved far and beyond what Kryptonians once were, where they only resembled us only in the barest of waves. And later on, they mutated even further than that."

"From genetic experiments to maintain their master race ideology," Kara concluded and Lara smiled.

"Exactly, these rogue Kryptonians formed their own planet, and eventually their own race, known as the Kree," Lara continued.

"They weren't content with just their own world," Claire said, picking on it.

"The Council showed the survivors a rare amount of mercy by not exiling them to the Phantom Zone, a decision they lived to regret later on," Lara told the group grimly. "The Kree expanded their forces and tried at least three documented times over the centuries to take past the world that they felt was there's by divine right. They were repelled each time."

"The third and final time, it lead to lasting damage, didn't it?" Claire asked.

"Yes," Lara agreed with her daughter. "That third and final time put one of the final death knells in Krypton's unstable core."

Kara closed her eyes and Harry placed her arm around her on one side, with Claire doing so on the other side. The death of everyone on her planet was still very new to her.

She coped with it well enough, when it wasn't being rubbed on her face.

"And the Kree is here, for me," Claire said.

"Or me," Kara said.

"Or…" Claire said and Harry cast her a warning look which caused her to shut up. Claire hastily amended her statement. "Or maybe they're not here for either of us."

Kara wasn't stupid, and she caught her interplay with her cousin and Harry. Now was not the time or the place.

"They could be here for anyone, or more likely they could be here for the technology on this Fortress," Lara said to them, diverting their attention properly to them.

"Any Kryptonians on this planet is just going to be a convenient excuse," Jean said, and she could feel something coming on.

It was a flash of an invasion force coming and she saw images of the destruction the Kree planned to cause. They weren't just after the Kryptonians and the technology.

"Earth, it's a SPB," Jean whispered, getting exactly why the Kree would want Earth other than the Kryptonians and their technology.

"A strategically placed battleground?' Kara asked and she frowned at this statement from Jean. "Exactly how did you know that term?"

"It just came to me in a flash of inspiration."

Kara had a few questions for Jean, but another blaring sound echoed through her ears. That was what woke her up in the first place. It stopped for a while but damn if it didn't start back up with a vengeance again.

Claire groaned. "Oh, don't tell me we're going to get another statement from Ronan the Loudmouth."

Harry smiled at her statement and patted her lightly on the back.

"I'm going to give the people of this planet one warning, and if they do not surrender the terrorists that they're harboring, we will reduce your planet to burning rubble," Ronan said to them. "You have one orbital cycle to comply, or you will be considered under violation of universal law."

"This guy's for real, isn't he?" Jean asked.

"This guy's for very real," Lara said, her voice frustrated. The Kree didn't like it when things didn't go their way because they saw themselves as superior. "Well, this is not what I wanted your first day on the planet to be like Kara. I know you trained a little bit in the solar simulator on Krypton, but…"

"If they're after me, I have to face them," Kara said, folding her arms. Her defiance reminded Lara of her mother's when Lara had to talk her down from something. She wasn't sure if it was a good thing.

"They could be after me," Claire argued.

"All the more reason to face them," Kara said, her fist clenched when she spoke. She turned fully to face her baby cousin. "I came to this planet to make sure that you're safe, and that's what I'm going to do."

Claire didn't want to even tell Kara about the fact that she just died a while back. Even though she got better, that would have freaked out her cousin something fierce. She knew Jean and Harry wouldn't bring it up either and she was grateful because of this.

"If she wants to fight, I say that we'll be there right beside her," Harry told her. "And I think that we have something that will tip the scales a little bit. Don't we, Lara?"

"Yes, we do," Lara agreed, knowing exactly what Harry alluded to and a bright crystalized closet opened. "It still may have stored solar energy in it from when Claire used it the last time. At least I know the cape does."

Claire led Kara into the next room and Harry had to pop out for a little bit to make a call to Tony Stark.

Someone like Stark, he would have to know what was going on with this alien invasion. If Harry had to hazard a guess, he would have to say that the Avengers already may have been assembled. That might have been a delicate shot in the dark though on his part.

* * *

><p>"Stark figured it out and he has the Avengers assembled, but so far there's just one super big mother ship circling around the planet," Harry said and he paused and added. "And an entire Armada of ships that are hovering about Mars but they haven't moved yet. Have you….."<p>

"I made a call to Ororo, the X-Men know about this," Jean responded. She gripped Harry's hand tightly for a minute and let it go. "But it's just so we can make sure, because we're going to need all of the help that we can get when it happens."

"It'll be okay," Harry whispered to Jean.

"Wish I could be more reassured than that," Jean told Harry with a smile on her face.

The doors of the chamber in the Fortress opened up. Kara exited it, wearing a black top with a silver "S" etched on it. A nice addition was a black skirt that shimmied down her legs, and a black and silver cape. A pair of black boots topped off the outfit quite nicely.

"It absorbs solar energy three times as quickly as normal, and it even converts the solar energy from other kinds of suns into yellow solar energy," Lara explained to her.

"Nice," Kara said, but she should have known.

"It was something that your mother invented, and she left the blueprints with me, so I finished it," Lara informed Kara. "She actually had to keep it under wraps, because the Committee for Acceptable Scientific Application would have had her head for inventing what was essentially a super powered battle suit without their permission"

"And don't you think they would have used it to empower the soldiers on the planet?" Harry asked.

"That's what Alura was afraid of," Lara confirmed to him. "It would lead to a civil war that was far more dangerous than anything Krypton ever whether. And the one that ended up destroying the planet was pretty bad."

Harry could see Lara's point.

"Where did Claire run off to?" Harry asked, noticing that the Last Daughter of Krypton was gone.

"She's run off to New York to see if she can find anything about the ship being spotted outside there," Lara said.

Harry frowned. "I thought that Invasion was going to touch down in Smallville."

"Maybe, it could be a two pronged attack," Lara suggested. Right now until the Kree made an offensive move, they were just guessing.

"So, how are you doing?" Harry asked Kara.

"Fine,' Kara said and she rubbed her temples. "Lara dumped a bit of information in my head so I wouldn't seem so alien when I came out in public."

"Is it assimilating nicely?" Harry asked her.

"Yeah, I did know enough by watching television," Kara said and Harry looked at her, arching his eyebrow. "What?"

"Never mind," Harry said, he would like to say that he wasn't amused but he knew better.

"No wait, tell me, please," Kara said, folding her arms over her chest and she corked an eyebrow when she looked at Harry.

"Television can be a spotty description of how Earth could be like," Harry explained to her. He had to concede one point. "But sometimes reality is far stranger than fiction."

Kara caught her reflection in the middle of a large crystal mirror.

"You look great, for the record, the suit suits you," Harry whispered to her.

Kara couldn't help it, she smiled brightly.

"The cape has stored solar energy to be released in an emergency," Harry reminded her and he showed her the clasp.

"That's handy, but why would anyone else wear a cape otherwise?" Kara asked.

"Tradition," Harry told her without skipping a beat.

Kara thought that humans had some really strange customs. They might say the same thing about some of the Kryptonian customs. If they knew about them that was.

"The Kree is here, and they won't stop until they get what they want," Kara said. "There's no need to sugar coat it, it's my ship that called them on down."

Kara wasn't allowed to stew in her own self guilt when Harry swept his strong arm over her and pulled her in tightly.

"They were looking for an excuse to invade, it was like Jean said, Earth is a SPB," Harry reminded her.

That didn't make Kara feel any better.

"And Clara went out there on her own to fight them, is she insane?" Kara asked. "Or did she…..something happened to her when that ship crashed? I knew that dinky ship wasn't safe."

"Claire…..will be fine," Harry said to Kara and he placed his hands on the back of her neck. Swiftly Harry rubbed it, giving her a massage to relax her. "You're pretty tense, you should relax."

"Trying, but failing," Kara said.

She succumbed to his touch and his magic fingers worked out her neck. Being in stasis so long had left a few kinks even though the yellow solar radiation balanced that completely out.

"You can't do Clara any good if you don't focus," Harry reminded Kara.

"She wouldn't want anything to happen to you, either," Jean said and she made her way to the other side of Kara.

It occurred to Kara that she didn't have a chance to thank either Jean or Harry for their rescue of her. That seemed to be a little bit unfair. She would have to correct that oversight.

"Thank you, both of you, I don't know what I'd do if I didn't get out," Kara said.

"It was what anyone would have done," Harry said, he didn't even know what was on board that ship, if anything.

He knew that people would have tried to manipulate Kara, for what they thought was good reasons. Or lock her up in some government facility and have her tested.

"So, do you think that Clara will be okay?" Kara asked him.

Harry allowed that question to linger for moments and then he answered. "Yes, Kara, I think that she'll be okay. Why don't we join her to make sure?"

Kara agreed with that. It was time to fight and make sure the Kree thought twice about invading her new home world.

* * *

><p>Ronan gave the ultimatum and a ship hovered around the planet searching for God only knows what. The problem was that no one could even get close enough to the ship, because their equipment failed when it came within a certain distance of it.<p>

Carol Danvers made her way down in the middle of New York. Whilst she was an Avenger, her responsibilities to SWORD came first and foremost. It just turned out that she was in that capacity as an Agent of SWORD even though there was a call for the Avengers to assemble. The lines were blurred between both sides.

"Nothing on the air and nothing in the ground," Carol said. She wanted a message from Ronan to figure out where he was hanging out.

He got even closer, she could tell.

A portal opened up in front of her and she raised her hand to fire.

"Relax, I come in peace, I'm not here to probe you," the young man said when he exited the portal. "Unless you want me to."

Carol was glad for something to lighten up the situation. The young man who had green eyes and unruly hair, dressed in a set of battle armor stepped forward. He was followed by a blonde girl who looked like she could be Carol's younger sister and a redhead with green eyes who exhibited the type of power that blew people away. Carol watched the trinity exit the portal.

"It's been a long time, hasn't it, Carol?" Harry asked her. The two exchanged smiles with each other. "I really wish that we could meet up more often when the fate of the world isn't hanging on the balance."

Carol agreed with that.

"Your mother is in Smallville, checking up on something, but the invasion looks to be happening here from what data our scanners have picked up," Carol told Harry. "And…"

"You've met Jean Grey, haven't you?" Harry asked.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Agent Danvers," Jean said shaking the woman's hand and she smiled.

"The pleasure is all mind Miss Grey, and please ,it's Carol," the woman required shaking her hand.

"Then it's Jean," Jean said, with a smile.

"And this is Kara…..I discovered her recently," Harry whispered in her ear, so only Carol could hear what he was saying.

She got the message and put two and two together well enough.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Kara, wish it was under better circumstances," Carol said, shaking the hands of the young blonde alien teenager, appreciating her firm grip.

"You're time is nearly up, if you do not produce the people that you're harboring, you will be eradicated."

Ronan's threatening could be heard and it was obvious that the man's patience ran out.

"He's really charming, you know that," Kara said and she craned her neck. She was pretty sure that her cousin was around here somewhere.

"He's not going to destroy the planet," Harry said to Carol. She relaxed slightly at this news. "Just all of the people on it."

At that news, she stopped relaxing at the news.

"How is that better?" Carol asked.

"The Kree wants to conquer the planet because it's a Strategically Placed Battleground for a war that they're fighting," Harry explained to her. "Taking out the people here and gaining revenge on Kryptonians are just killing two birds with one stone."

Carol didn't want to seem like she had no faith in what Harry could do. "So, do you have a plan?"

"Absolutely," Harry said and he hoped that it was in place.

And more importantly that it would work. The Sorcerer Supreme's responsibilities were not to stop every single alien invasion that happened.

"Oh, and in case I don't get a chance to tell you should we be killed or enslaved," Carol said and Harry raised his eyebrow. "Congratulations on passing your trials."

Harry could have sworn for one wild second she was going to say something else. "Thanks."

Harry's eyes darted into the sky. There was nothing in the sky, not even a bird, not even a plane.

He wondered if some people passed this off as an elaborate prank.

"You were warned!"

It was show time and Harry's eyes traveled up to see the arrival of the Kree's ship. There were three of them in the middle of New York City.

"Brace yourself," Carol whispered.

Kara had a score to settle with the Kree. Especially if the rumors were true and they were the ones that took Kandor out from underneath their noses.

The ship dropped a pod out in the middle of the city.

"Don't touch it," Kara warned them.

"Yes, there's something inside, it's alive, but it isn't alive," Jean said and she could feel something attack her.

"It's a bomb made out of living material and it will destroy any organic life that's not Kree," Harry confirmed after a diagnostic scan.

He made arrangements to block off the area so no civilians happened about and triggered the body. When that was done, Harry pulled the crystal key out of his pocket and whispered into it.

"Lara, do you have any insight on how to disable this bomb without taking out all organic life on Earth?" Harry whispered to her.

"Yes, it's a very careful and tedious process….."

"You were warned!" Ronan's voice bellowed and he dropped down. He held a large hammer in his hand.

Claire Kent, Clara Jor-El watched, and she saw red. She was not going to let him put people in danger.

She rushed in, blowing past everyone from her vantage point. She flew at the speed of light and slammed her first into Ronan's jaw.

The Grand Accuser flew head over heels and landed on the ground. His bodyguards turned towards them.

"If you wanted me, you didn't have to look that hard," Claire said, and she saw two more ships appear above her head.

Kree soldiers dropped down to the ground and pointed their weapons directly at the Girl of Steel. It was a situation where she couldn't afford too much stealth.

'_Jean, you and Kara help Claire, I'll take care of this bomb,' _Harry thought, hovering the crystal key with the miniaturized Lara AI above his ear. He waited for her to relay instructions to him.

The Kree Invasion was in full force and they want to establish their dominion on Earth.

**To Be Continued On October 4****th****, 2014. **

* * *

><p><strong>This chapter we get a history lesson of why the Kree has such a mad on for Krypton and their survivors. <strong>

**Oh, Claire, you're as fast as a speeding bullet and about as subtle as well. Perhaps a bit more subtle than if you a Clark, but still….not that subtle. **

**Things are heating up in Part Two. See you then! **


	5. Dominion Part Two

**Chapter Five: Dominion Part Two.**

* * *

><p>The entire world felt the ramifications of what happened despite the fact that the invasion of the Kree was centralized in one area. They wondered what they were going on about. Some of them guessed. The Internet was full of many things; one of the big things was the rumors that there were aliens among them. A lot of people scoffed at this point because it was the Internet being the Internet.<p>

One thing could not be denied and there were a lot of aliens out there. Many of them decided to designate Earth as their playground.

There was a lot of chaos with people stocking up for supplies. The blonde haired girl waited at the airport and hummed underneath her breath. She tapped her foot down on the ground and placed her hands upon the top of her head.

It was going to get insane. That was something that everyone around the world can agree about. They could agree about this even though the rest of the time they couldn't agree on what they wanted for dinner.

'_Great,' _the blonde thought and she wanted to do an epic facepalm. Her hand lifted to her face and she slapped it. _'Great, that's just wonderful. That's just the best of it, isn't it?'_

The blonde dropped her arms down by her hips and gave a poignant sigh when she spoke. She shook her head after a half of a second.

She dressed in a black top along with a pair of blue jeans. She carried a bag right beside her and she slipped off to the side of a terminal.

There were people scrambling around and they spoke in extremely loud voices. They wondered what was going on now.

'_This is just great, isn't it?' _she thought to herself. Then again, she might be repeating her previous thoughts. She wasn't completely sure.

She needed to find out what the hell was going on and yesterday. The blonde frantically tapped her fingers on a keypad.

Gwendolyn Marie Stacy, Gwen to her friends, hated when she was left out of the loop. Especially when she was being let out of the loop regarding something major. She was without a shadow of a doubt one of the smartest females in the world. Some would consider her to be the absolute smartest girl in any age group without a shadow of a doubt.

She waited for the communication to come back on through from the other side. The blonde tapped her foot and rocked herself back and forth. She tugged on her hair and gave a supreme sigh of frustration.

'_Okay, what the hell is going on here?' _she thought to herself and spoke for a second. She resisted the urge to throw her hands into the air, given the fact she already looked like a spaz.

There was a crackling sound over on the other end. That was good news, someone was there. That meant that the invaders didn't block out the communications completely. This was on a separate line for security reasons.

"Are you there?" Gwen asked.

The breathless voice on the other end of the line answered in affirmation. "Yeah, I'm here…..but it seems like we've got a big problem."

Understatement of the century, maybe it was. Gwen decided that now was not the time for any snark.

"Yes, I would say so," Gwen agreed.

She could hear an announcement that the flight on out might have been delayed. That was just great. She should be back over New York to help. Instead Gwen found herself halfway across the world to stew in her own frustration and her own impatience.

"Fuck, this awful," Gwen muttered underneath her breath. She clutched her fists in anger and wanted to put it through something.

"Calm down, we're as doomed as you are, things are insane where I am," she told her over the communication link.

Gwen snorted. "Since when are things not insane from where you are."

"That's true," the woman on the other end of the communication link said. Gwen called her out on that one. "Things are about to heat up even more now."

Gwen didn't like the looks of this. She would go as far to say that she hated pretty much every aspect of this situation. The alien invasion was over there and she was over her. She checked her back to make sure she was ready to move in a moment's notice.

"Our mutual friend is in the center of the chaos," the voice on the other end of the phone stated.

Gwen snorted at this very obvious statement. "Isn't he always?"

"He always is," the girl on the other end of the phone said. The sound of typing over the other end of the phone could be heard. "Sorry, I'm looking for something, I'll let you know when I find it."

"Take your time, take your time," Gwen agreed and she let a long sigh out of her mouth. "I'm pretty sure that you have a lot of things to take care of and there's more than enough information coming in. And not all of it's true either."

"Yeah, information is my game, and I have to hack into their systems, he's sending me all of the information that he has on them, but…..it's a challenge," the girl on the other end of the phone commented.

She thought that alien technology was a royal pain right where she sat. Gwen could tell that her contact enjoyed a challenge and she'd be lying if she wasn't into the same thing.

"Let me know if I can do anything on my end," Gwen said.

The girl appreciated the offer. "Oh, no problem, no problem, I'll let you know. Good luck and hope you get out of the airport with your sanity intact."

Gwen snorted, that would be the day.

"I'll talk to you later, Oracle," she commented in response.

"Yes, talk to you later, I'll be in touch, I've got to check something out," she said and the line came off on the other side.

That left Gwen alone in the airport and completely and utterly frustrated. She wanted to just throw her hands into the air and scream and scream loudly.

'_Calm down,' _she reminded herself.

Gwen could hear something blipping on the other end of her phone. The blonde's eyes snapped up and she held the phone in the palm of her hand.

**There's a ride for you on the other side of the gate if you want it. I'll see you later.**

Gwen's smile grew completely wide and she accepted the ride. It was better than wasting half of her life way in a place like this. She felt a burst of hope that she could get out of here on time, especially with the person hooking her up.

* * *

><p>Lily Evans arrived on the scene, after that moment with Ronan and Claire, the Kree fled for a second. They likely would return for reinforcements.<p>

"The fight happened, but they disappeared, and they'll return with reinforcements," Carol said, with Harry joining her.

"I disabled the bomb, and they fled, I don't think that they expected that to happen," Harry commented to them.

"Well, you're always full of surprises," Carol said and Harry grinned, he tried not to get a swollen head.

It was really hard not to get one. Especially because he was one of the few people on Earth who might be entitled to one. Harry couldn't say and he didn't want to come across as biased.

"Seems like I missed some of the action," Lily said and she looked more disappointed than anything. That being said she couldn't worry about her own entertainment value; she had a lot of things to do. "But, I suppose that just gives us a moment to catch our breath."

"We're going to have to divide them," Harry said, and Lily nodded. "We hoped that we would never have to use this plan."

"They pretty much forfeited any rights they had when they invaded this planet," Lily said and she looked frustrated.

And why, why did they invade? For some kind of vendetta? That seemed like a huge pile of bullshit to be honest and Lily could spell any BS a mile away.

Carol had one question, there seemed to be something really important missing from the attempts to defend the planet.

"Earth has four Green Lanterns and none of them can be spared?" Carol asked and she looked incredulous at this point.

"Some BS rainbow war, or something, that's why they're not around," Lily told the group and Carol frowned.

"That's about right," Carol said and she folded her arms. It was always some color of the spectrum with that lot.

"Well Earth needs to learn how to stand on its own two feet, otherwise we're going to be indebted to other people," Harry said, looking around for trouble. One could be chilled with the determination that was his eyes.

No one was going to take his planet at all. Not whilst Harry was here, not if he could help it. They wanted a battle, well if they wanted a battle, then Harry was going to give them a war.

'_So any luck?' _Harry asked her.

Jean chimed in after a few seconds. _'No, they came in, Ronan gave his big speech. Claire punched his lights out and he disappeared into the night.'_

Harry hated this fact and he hated that he was going to have to play that waiting game. His arms arm's folded.

He switched venues in his ear piece.

"Is it ready?" Harry whispered to the person on the other line. "Yes, it's ready, good, it's ready."

Harry got a message that said that Gwen was stranded halfway across the world. It wasn't like that she could web zip over from there to over here.

"Oh and make sure you send a ride to pick Gwen up, this is something that we need to do, all hands on deck, and all that," Harry said speaking to his contact. He got confirmation that what he wanted to do was getting done. "Really? Good, it's done, I'll let her know."

Harry sent off a quick text message to Gwen and made sure that she received it.

"Okay, we're going to have to move quickly, because they're moving in," Lily said when her contacts were talking. "Has your contact been able to hack into their communications just yet?"

"You know, she's trying," Harry said and he didn't really expect her to get in any time soon.

He heard a garbled communication. There was a lot of static and a few strangled phrases there. Harry frowned in his deepest tone of voice.

"Sorry, sorry, work in progress, I hope that I didn't blow out your ear drums," his contact said on the other line.

Harry waved off her statement and her apologies. He would be pleasantly surprised if she had broken through that quickly. "No, it's fine."

Harry saw the civilians look off to the side. He wondered why people would have decided to go in the middle of the city, right when aliens with death weapons showed up. They might have only fled for a few seconds and they would be coming back.

'_I hear something,' _Jean thought and she felt something bombard her head.

'_Jean, keep it together, please,' _Harry said. _'If you need to go off somewhere, we'll understand…..'_

'_No, I'm fine!' _she shouted hotly and the backlash from her frustration caused the back of Harry's head to throb from the backlash.

He shook his head, he saw something flash brightly in the back of the head. He started to rub the back of his head and he gave a loud and prominent sigh.

'_Okay, it's fair enough,' _Harry thought and he didn't want to have this conversation, especially with the fate of the world.

Claire floated over towards Harry and looked into the sky.

"Nothing, they didn't flee, did they?" Claire asked. That seemed a little bit too easy to her.

Lara was the one that answered her daughter's question. "They didn't flee, that was a warning shot, the real invasion was going to come next."

A huge flashing set of lights appeared right down above their heads. Harry frowned and he expected another one of those bombs to drop down.

"I don't know how you managed to divert the bomb, but you won't stop us from getting what we want," Ronan said, his voice thundering. No one could miss that mouth.

Ronan dropped to the ground, and several Kree troops down on the ground. They held weapons in their hands and prepared to shoot first and ask questions maybe.

"Secure the area," a garbled communication came in through Harry's ear and he hooked them all up. "Make sure to put a bomb down on the ground and blow them away this time."

"Bomb, again, I'll take this one," Harry said, disappearing into a flash.

"Sure, leave us with the really fun stuff," Carol said, she was half joking. The Kree pointed their weapons at them. They stared down the not so friendly fire that would destroy them if the Kree was given half of the chance.

She raised her hand and blasted one of the Kree soldiers down onto the ground. He went ass over tea kettle and hit the ground extremely hard.

"She's got our powers!" one of them yelled at the top of his lungs.

"And something tells me they took great offense to that," Carol muttered underneath her breath, and she nailed two of the closest Kree soldiers with a secondary attack.

The Kree took great affront to that and closed in on Carol in an attempt to punish her for the crime of being a human that stole their superior genetics.

"Then she's just as bad as the Kryptonians, and she deserves to be punished!" one of the Kree guards yelled at the top of his lungs.

"Destroy the unworthy one, she must perish along with the children of Krypton!" one of the soldiers said and he pointed a large energy weapon at Carol.

Kara sounded grim when she spoke. "I'm guessing yes."

A large energy cannon blasted its energy wave at the group, but they scattered. Carol wasn't going to make it easy on them. Neither were Claire and Kara. They all closed in and prepared themselves to pounce. They took out as many Kree as they could, not caring if they lived or died.

* * *

><p>For once the Nexus of Weirdness didn't occur in Smallville, which was a complete and utter shock. That wasn't to say that the alien invasion wouldn't have made its where here eventually. It always did. For a small town in rural Kansas, there was no shortage of action in the city of Smallville.<p>

This time though, they were like the rest of the world.

"All of the traffic up the street is insane, I just had to fight for my life getting here, and it's not even happening here!" a dark haired girl with shocking violet eyes said when she entered the room.

She entered a farm house with a mailbox outside that read "KENT" on it. Already inside the house, a dark haired girl sat, her back away from her. A cute blonde with short hair also sat there, both of them intently watching the television.

"Is that Smallville?" she asked.

"What do you think, Lois?" the short haired blonde asked, without taking her eyes away from the television screen. She pushed out a chair.

Lois Lane sat down, completely transfixed about what happened.

"And there goes the Sorcerer Supreme," Lois said in excitement. She nearly bounced up and down with her eagerness flowing through. Somehow, some way, she restrained herself. "I can't believe that he passed his trials and didn't even talk to us."

"Well, I think that he has better things on his mind, and something came up," the blonde said.

"I know that Chloe…..things happen so fast…..did you hear the rumors about all of the people hovering around the Dam? What's so interesting about a random dam in the middle of Hicksville nowhere to begin with?"

Chloe Sullivan shook her head. Leave it to her cousin to be blunt. It did get them to the point which she appreciated one hundred percent.

"I'm pretty sure that Harry knows what's going on," Chloe commented, and they hadn't had a chance to talk to Harry since then.

Lois laughed in amusement. Her cousin had the ability to state the obvious. "Oh really, Harry knows what's going on? Since when doesn't Harry know what's going on?"

"I'm sure that there have been a few times, but it's been extremely rare," Chloe said, folding her arms. That being said, she wanted to say that she couldn't believe that Claire would have attacked them so brazenly.

"What I want to know is who is the blonde?" the dark haired girl asked.

"And more importantly how long will it be before she enters Harry's bed and revels in the majesty of his wand?" Lois asked, but a power outage caused them to jump halfway into the air. The three girls found themselves in complete and utter darkness. "Well that's just great, as if the world isn't going insane enough."

"Yeah, things are pretty bad out there," the third girl said.

Lois snorted, that was the understatement of the century. She thought that it was lucky that she got back here alive.

"Really, you don't need to tell me twice, Lana," Lois said and she folded her arms. "She's out there in the middle of it fighting. And just after she died not too long ago."

"You still say that way too casually," Lana said to her.

Lois corked her eyebrow. "Oh…..trust me, it's better that you say it casually. If you don't say it casually, it raises a lot of questions. You have to act like the things in this town are nothing out of the ordinary. Trust me, in Smallville weird is normal and normal is weird."

Chloe snickered, if that wasn't the truth about Smallville, she didn't exactly know what was. Her amusement brimmed through her eyes and she leaned back, crossing her legs.

"That's a really interesting point, Lois," Chloe said to her.

"I'm glad that you approve of it," Lois said and she tried not to look too smug about how pleased she looked. "So, where is Mrs. Kent, anyway?"

"I think that she'll be back any moment now, she had to go out to talk to someone," Chloe said, and she waited patiently for the power to come back on.

The long wait proved that she would need more than a sufficient amount of patience. She jiggled her foot.

"The phones are dead, I can't get a signal either, so we can't even call about the power," Lois said. "Then again, this is a piece of junk that I want to hurl against a wall. We can put a man on the Moon, but why can't anyone provide a cell phone that works?"

Chloe sounded extremely serious. "That's one of the mysteries of life, isn't it, Lois?"

"I guess so," Lois said and she got up, pacing like a caged animal.

"If only we brought a tranquilizer dart," Lana commented, folding her arms over her chest and there was amusement shimmering through her eyes.

"Oh, that's really funny, you know that," Lois replied in amusement. "And there's an alien invasion out there, and I should be in the middle of it…."

"Yeah, we know that you enjoy putting yourself in the middle of perilous situations," Lana said and Lois raised her arms into the air.

There was nothing that she could do to win this argument. She couldn't even get over the county line. She barely made it back here with her life and sanity intact.

"Sorry, I'm back now."

An attractive redhead woman in her forties approached them. She dressed in a rather swift female business suit.

"Mrs. Kent, good to see that you made it out of the madhouse," Lois said in a relieved voice.

"One of the pods hit outside of Belle Reve," Martha whispered and she locked the door.

"You mean it broke open and let all of the meteor mutants out," Lana said and she looked nervous.

At least half of those meteor mutants tried to kill her or tried to kidnap her or stalked her at one point or another. It may have allowed her to develop a couple of issues. Lana wasn't completely one hundred percent sure because of that.

"Don't worry, I'm sure that we'll be perfectly safe here," Chloe said and she got a message.

'_Stay put.'_

Chloe found that mostly reassuring, even though she felt nervousness flow over her. They had to play the worst game of all, the waiting game.

* * *

><p>Tony Stark could do things that would blow people's minds. Often he could do just that with a box of scraps and sometimes it could be done in a cave. That being said, the armor clad Avenger awaited his next move.<p>

"Okay, let's see if we have it now, JARVIS," Tony said.

"Just one second, sir, I believe that your upgrades through Kang's borrowed technology may very well allow you to hack into their systems," JARVIS said. "But future Earth technology is still a shade or two behind this advanced alien technology."

"We're just going to have to do this the old fashioned way if we don't get in there," Captain America said, and he held his shield ready to go.

"Yeah, we're going to have to take them down, before they try something else," Wasp said and she folded her arms and looked on in. "Where's SHIELD in all of this?"

"Oh, they're around, you know Fury wouldn't be able to stay out of this for too long," Hawkeye said.

The Hulk walked over and folded his arms. "Don't need to worry about all of that fancy crap, just point me over to something and I'll take it out. I'll smash it, just wait."

"Whoa, easy there big guy," Tony said and he placed his hand on the Hulk's shoulder and steered him back into the conversation. "We'll be able to do it, trust me."

"Yeah, I trust you," Hulk grunted and he folded his arm.

"Just keep it together, friend, and…..by Odin's beard!" Thor yelled at the top of his lungs and he could see a swirling portal vortex emit above his head.

"And it's go time," Tony said and he hacked into the system. "Someone else beat to the punch, I can't believe it."

Wasp couldn't help needling him. Especially because it lightened the mood.

"Oooh, has your ego been damaged because that?" she asked him, pretty much cooing mockingly.

"No, my ego hasn't been damaged," Tony said, crossing his arms together.

"Are you sure?" Hawkeye asked and he looked up. "What are they doing? They're just circling us."

"Not circling us, plotting," Black Widow said, ready to pounce at the first hint of attack.

"Well look who finally decided to show up," Hawkeye told her and she gave him one of those looks. "What do you have?"

"They want the two visitors and any technology they have," Black Widow said to them.

Iron Man's face became determined underneath the helmet. "I hate to say that but they're doing a good job at it. I've been booted out right away, let me try to get back in."

They looked up and saw Carol Danvers fly over the air. She landed at the feet of the Avengers.

"Well, look who decided to show up," Hawkeye said dryly.

"Are you okay?" Wasp asked her.

Carol shook her head and she could really feel her body ache from the fact that she hit the ground hard. She took on the Kree rather well, but they overwhelmed her through the sheer numbers. They could only win through the numbers game by ganging up on them.

"Oh, I'm fine, but you should your head up," Carol said and she knew that the Kree was hovering close by.

A large ship manifested over the top of their heads and aimed a hovering cannon towards their head. It aimed the cannon and blasted through the air. The Avengers scattered to avoid being hit.

"I've got this one," Hulk growled and he raised his fist into the air.

He slammed his fist into the ship and caused it to explode.

"Simple, but effective," Wasp said.

Suddenly, a pair of blurs shot over their heads and Wasp was taken aback. She watched the progress of them and her mouth hung wide and far.

A ship became completely visible for a few seconds. It was slammed into hard as they could go. Explosions rang on supreme over them.

"Okay, you've got it, I'm here," Black Widow said. She got the eyes of all of the Avengers on her. "He's into the ships."

There was no need to tell the Avengers who he was. They all knew.

"He's always on top of things, and not just women most of the time," Hawkeye replied to them, but then he looked up and saw a giant squid like ship hover above him. "I'm going to need a bigger bow."

"No time for that," Captain America said, clutching on his shield. He whipped it out towards the ship. The shield hit and caused a fiery explosion. "Let's take it out."

"Yeah, I've got this one!" Wasp yelled and she raised her hands, firing a series of stingers at the ship. They bounced off of the ship and repelled back at her. "And I guess that I'm going to need a big set of stingers."

The Avengers weren't going to let the Kree take over their planet without a fight. They weren't Earth's Mightiest Heroes for no reason. They were going to fight until the battle was one.

"HAVE AT THEE!" Thor yelled at the top of his lungs and three of the Kree soliders on the ground felt the wrath of the Prince of Asgard.

The Avengers refused to let this down without a fight. What would one expect from Earth's Mightiest Heroes?

* * *

><p>Jean Grey stumbled around and her head continued to throb. The misery continued to fire around her mind. She thought for a little bit that the headaches were getting better. And they did for a while. It was less recurring and she thought that she was out of the woods.<p>

The redhead breathed in and out heavily, clutching the top of her head. Something throbbed through her head. Thousands of thoughts bombarded her mind.

Each atrocity that the Kree did flashed through her mind's eye and taunted her fiercely. Jean wanted to clench her fist around the throat of someone and strangle the life out of them. What Lara told them didn't even scratch the surface of the atrocities that she saw them commit.

She could see the X-Men join the battle.

Jean felt a dizzy spell hit her and the Kree went towards her. It was almost like they moved in slow motion to draw out her torment.

"Freeze!" one of them yelled.

The Kree looked at her eyes. They emitted a power that was completely terrifying but yet again, it was completely familiar.

"No, I won't, you can't make me," Jean hissed in a strangled voice, her fists closing together when her body shook.

The redhead felt her body go through more thrashes and spasms than one could even know.

"FREEZE!" one of the soldiers yelled and he was starting to get nervous. His gun pointed at the redhead made him wonder if he bit off more than he could chew.

More visions of the horrors the Kree performed bombarded to her head. Jean felt her own memories bleed in, memories that she suppressed because it was just easier that way.

She could have saved her. She should have saved her, but she didn't. She absorbed her dying consciousness.

Jean could see time freeze around her and everything sped up around her. She could hear voices but no words could be distinguished. It all overlapped in her mind.

Harry stood on the outskirts, panicked, trying to get to Jean. He nearly ran into the X-Men, with Scott and Ororo being on the side, followed by Kurt, Kitty, Rogue, and Bobby.

"What's going on?" Scott asked him, and Harry raised his eyebrow.

"Jean is tapping into her full power," Harry replied to him and Scott looked at him through his crimson visor. "I'd highly advise you stay away and allow me to handle this."

Scott about opened his mouth to reply about this statement, but Professor Xavier popped into his mind in response.

'_He's right, I feared that this could happen one day,' _Charles thought. He didn't know exactly what was going to happen. Only she knew that something bad was going to happen.

There was really no point in really wondering about what he could have done in the past. The fact was that Jean would remember everything, including the fact that Xavier had to put blocks on her powers. What was done was done and there was no turning back now.

She was more powerful than he ever realized and those blocks finally shattered. Leaving an awe inspiring spectacle in their wake. Jean's eyes lit up with a fury that caused many to back up.

"I'm going to end this invasion!" Jean's voice yelled and it echoed when she yelled.

"Abort the mission!" Ronan yelled at the top of his lungs and he rushed to the mothership.

Kara never knew the Kree to leave well enough alone. They had a philosophy that they would be the superior race, therefore anything that made them retreat would be so inferior.

"They're running," Kara whispered and her voice grew extremely awestruck. She couldn't really believe it, mostly because she didn't want to believe it.

Harry viewed the Kree leaving and the blast of cosmic energy that Jean channeled caught the ships on the tail end.

Kitty spoke for all of them. "Whoa!"

"Yes, whoa is right," Lily agreed and she stepped in. She carried an oversized cannon over her shoulder.

She borrowed it from Phil Coulson's private stash of overly large weapons. Lily was kind of disappointed that she didn't have much of a chance to use it.

"Make sure that you keep everyone back, I'm going to have to in, and hopefully pacify her!" Harry said.

"It's really her," Kara breathed and she looked awe struck.

Claire caught her cousin's words and frowned. "Really, it's who?"

Kara took a few seconds to bask in the power that she ran into. There was nothing like what she saw now. Her cousin nudging her hard in the shoulder caused her to snap back to life. One couldn't blame her for wanting to get a closer look at the power.

"The Phoenix, it's the Phoenix," Kara whispered. She was so much in awe that her voice dropped into a whisper.

Jean Grey was the Phoenix and the Phoenix was Jean Grey. It was a myth that was known all across the universe.

"So, on a scale of one to ten, how bad is this?" Carol asked.

"It depends on how much she's been angered," Kara said.

Jean's voice rang out and it echoed.

"You dare block my power! You dare hold back my potential!"

Charles Xavier heard this tone louder than anyone else. That type of power would overwhelm anyone. He even had doubts that someone with a trained mind such as himself could even withstand the overwhelming and awesome power of the Phoenix Force.

It would be what many people would call a damned if you do, damned if you don't.

The Avengers, the X-Men, Harry, Claire, and Kara stood on the ground. The representatives of SHIELD moved in.

"Take her down!" Fury yelled.

Harry had to turn to Fury and he held up his hand. He blocked the SHIELD agents from advancing with barely a movement.

"I wouldn't recommend that," Harry said and all of the SHIELD agents folded up and slumped to the ground before they even could react.

"Do you not understand who I am? Do you not understand the power that I possessed? I stopped an alien invasion with the merest gesture, and now I have the entire power to rewrite universes! I am power personified."

Harry was about ready to step over and deal with things.

The Phoenix was reawakened and she was not a happy camper.

"Now, where is Charles Xavier?"

**To Be Continued On October 6****th****, 2014. **

* * *

><p><strong>And the Phoenix is awake and she's not a happy camper to be honest. Someone is going to have to sedate her. <strong>

**Xavier really was in a damned if you don't, damned if you do situation with that. The biggest problem is that he tried to handle the situation and didn't fully appreciate the situation. **

**Lots of cameos in this chapter, but with the world going insane, that leads a perfect opportunity for things to heat up.  
><strong>


	6. Song of Despair

**Chapter Six: Song of Despair. **

* * *

><p>Harry Potter feared that this was going to happen. The moment that Jean started getting the headaches, he watched her nervously. He didn't know how it would happen or when it would happen. All he knew was it would happen. The green eyes of the young man flashed when he followed her progress. Her power was insane and it was unchartable..<p>

It would be unwise to try and stall this from happening. It already was a bad enough situation as it was. There was a glow that emitted from her body and the Phoenix rotated on the spot. She swayed back and forth in the midst of the air. Her glow personified the power that someone like her had.

Harry turned to Xavier who thought about breaking through her barriers.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Harry said and Xavier opened his mouth. He shook his head. "You know, I don't really care what you did, because that doesn't matter right now. You took the decision that you thought was the best. There was only one problem."

Harry paused and added as an afterthought.

"You were wrong."

The green eyed young man frowned in frustrated and he saw Claire and Kara step to either side of him. Ororo leaned in and tried to figure out what was going on here.

"Surely there is some way that we can help," Ororo said with a frown across her face.

She hated seeing her friend like this. Jean looked for a second like she was going through some kind of seizure when she felt the power.

"Maybe we can drain off a little power," Rogue suggested and she slowly pulled her glove off.

Harry's eyes turned towards her and he shook his head. "Trust me, that kind of power would be a bit too spicy for you."

"Can you see, that I have risen?" Jean asked and her voice echoed suddenly.

Harry knew that power might make even the most well adjusted people insane and Jean had a lot of stress.

"We need to take her down!" Cyclops yelled and he took half of a step forward.

Harry figured that Scott would want to try.

"Scott, I wouldn't go in there, you're out of your weight class," Harry warned him.

Scott shook his head. "You tried everything that you could, but you couldn't save her. That just proves that you're not as good as you think you are."

"Well we're in mutual company," Harry said, and he saw Scott move on in.

'_What an idiot!' _Harry groaned to himself mentally, shaking his head.

Ororo or the rest of the X-Men couldn't even react because there was a barrier that was placed up. Scott moved forward but now it was too late for any of them to drag his ass out of the fire before it got burned.

"JEAN!" Scott yelled to her and she turned towards him, a bit of disdain dripping from her voice when she spoke.

"It's you," Jean whispered in her harshest voice and she clutched her fists together. There was a second where she glared him down.

'_Scott, you need to get out of there, now!' _Charles warned him, but his warning fell on deaf ears.

Time slowed down around them and Scott stared up at Jean. He tried to rush towards here and blast an optic blast towards her.

Harry edged forward to get involved, but because of how Jean manipulated the fabric of time and space, he was not getting to save Cyclops in time. He really didn't want to but he figured that he might as well make the effort.

"You tried and attacked me!" Jean yelled and she caused Scott to be held down with her telekinesis. It was nearly crushing. "You think that you have all of the answers because he's Xavier's Chosen One. When in reality, all he's doing is living vicariously through you. You see, if he ever could walk, you're no longer needed. Until then, you're his avatar, out there leading the X-Men in his image. And his image is nearly as flawed as Magneto's….peace or war, both of them have their downsides."

Scott felt himself curbstomped by her telekinesis onto the ground. His glasses broke and she held his eye beams in. His eyes felt like that were burning from what she did to him. He groaned and almost screamed in absolute agony!

"Please Jean, come to your senses!" Scott yelled, and Jean raised her hand.

"I'll make sure that you understand where this world is going now!" Jean yelled and she engulfed Scott in cosmic fire.

She wanted to make him sweat; she wanted to make him scream. Jean couldn't bring herself to kill him, even though she thought that it would be doing the world a service. It was like putting down a mentally challenged puppy dog to her. She could finish him off, but it wouldn't really work.

Jean's hand raised and Scott vanished in a pop.

There was a large crash across the town and the X-Men all cringed.

"Do not worry, I teleported him off, but he won't be waking up for a while," Jean said and she shook her head. "Maybe he'll learn his lesson."

She had a confusing range of thoughts. All of that power flooding in at once caused her headache to suddenly worsen. She heard all of the thoughts around her.

Time frozen from the bubble she placed herself in, to allow her powers to grow completely. A crusty red cocoon wrapped around her and her powers only grew every single moment that her arising continued.

* * *

><p>Lily Evans was never really the model of tact and she could see what was happening around her.<p>

"You blocked her powers," Lily whispered to Xavier.

Xavier felt like he was getting the third degree. He couldn't deny it. At the same time, he felt as if he had to defend himself.

"I had no choice, I thought it was for the best," Xavier said defensively, and he shook his head.

He thought that it was the best. There was evidence that he had in front of him that it wasn't the best. That power came, something burst in Jean's mind that caused her to lose sense of herself temporary. Now she retreated into this cocoon momentarily when the thoughts got too much of her.

Xavier frowned, he heard an angry buzz of thoughts and he realized that it wasn't going from Jean. Rather it was coming in from the redhead right next to his side.

"You just couldn't leave well enough alone, could you?" Lily asked Xavier and her arms folded together across her chest. The redhead looked rather agitated on the sheer principle of the matter. Her mind was buzzing. "There are always other ways, other than blocking her powers full stop. Did you realize how dangerous that was?"

"I realized the potential danger of it, yes," Xavier said, his voice bubbling in annoyance. He couldn't believe that he was being questioned because of this situation. He already could feel agitated enough by it. "But, it was dangerous to allow her to have that level of power that young. Especially the trauma that she went through at such a young age."

"So you blocked her memories and her powers," Lily said and Harry casually stepped in between his mother and Xavier.

This might not really end well and the focus would go away from Jean. So he had to allow cooler heads to prevail.

"Yes, if I had done things differently, I wouldn't have done it that way," Charles said and he tried to get a fix on Jean's mind.

Harry wasn't going to warn Charles about the dangers of interfering with Jean's mind ever again. She would register his presence as an absolute and utter threat after the last time. That much was obvious.

"Yeah, I guess that you couldn't," Lily commented in her most icy tone that she could muster.

If looks could kill, Charles Xavier would have been deader than dead. There was no question about it at all. Lily's anger was terrifying and it was something that could not be taught. The fact that she was able to keep most of her temper in check really proved how much self control that she head.

Xavier didn't focus on that. He focused on finding one of his oldest students and bringing her back around. Mostly because he felt a lot of guilt, and he made this mess, he would have to fix it. He focused on her.

'_Jean?' _Charles asked to her in a tentative voice.

He thought that he might have reached her but she was giving him a silent treatment. His mind tried to get into hers.

"Just back off Charles," Ororo said, she could see the urgency in Harry's eyes. She was really feeling nervous, especially after Jean did what she did to Scott. And she held back, that was the scariest part about that.

The two of them were friends for a long time even after Scott tried to push for more. The Phoenix regarded Scott Summers as a nuisance at best. Ororo shuddered to think what could happen to Charles Xavier if that's what happened to a minor annoyance.

"Charles, you should back off," Ororo repeated to him.

Logan leaned in. "Yeah, Chuck, you should leave well enough alone."

'_I have to try,' _Charles thought to himself, his guilt was burning through his mind. _'Jean, I know that you're in there somewhere. Somewhere amongst the power of the Phoenix Force.'_

'_I am the Phoenix Force now,' _Jean thought to him and her anger bubbled to an increased surface. _'That's what I always had the potential to be. You never wanted the power to come out. You knew that I wouldn't fit your vision. Your little avatar, your little boy scout, you couldn't appreciate anything but your vision.'_

'_That's not true at all Jean, you know that's not true,' _Charles thought to her and there was a moment where he suddenly felt even more nervous.

Harry could see Charles in a trance. He was locked on the Astral Plane talking with Jean. Harry tried to look inside and he came to one realization.

"It's too late now," Harry told Ororo and Logan.

"Yeah, even I figured that much," Logan grunted.

"What's going to happen to him now?" Kurt asked, he had been watching in awe.

"Nothing good, nothing good," Kitty muttered underneath her breath and she held her hands together. She could feel the power and it alarmed her.

"If he angered the Phoenix and tried to chain her, then by universal right, any consequences will be his to suffer," Kara commented and several eyes turned towards her. She was still transfixed in awe over that power. "That's what the legend has said, and until it gets contradicted…."

They all nodded in understanding. Harry didn't really know what was going to happen next. He just hoped that Xavier was going to handle this nicely.

Lily understood was about to happen and summarized it nicely. "He's pretty much fucked."

They didn't really need to say anything further than that. Charles Xavier was completely and utterly screwed and not in the good way at all.

'_Jean, I can't even begin to understand what you're going though,' _Xavier said to her in a gentle voice. _'But you know, I hope that you calm down, I'm sorry for what happened.'_

There was a brief second that Jean almost seemed pacified by his statement. Perhaps she had been too hard on him. Perhaps there were circumstances that were beyond the man's control. She should have given him a chance, as insane as that would have been.

'_Maybe you're right,' _Jean thought to him and she breathed in and out. Her voice remained completely calm. _'Maybe you don't understand, maybe you have realized that you've made a mistake and feel bad.'_

For one brief moment, Charles Xavier felt some relief. He believed that he had finally gotten through to her. The healing could begin after that. He couldn't erase the past. That was one of his greatest regrets. No amount of fixing someone's mind would change what happened.

'_Yes, I'm sure that you don't understand,' _Jean commented and her voice grew completely tranquil when she spoke. _'But I guess that I'll find a way to make you understand, and I'll make you understand when I make you a prisoner in your own mind!'_

Jean gave a psychic shriek and Xavier tried to pull out of her mind to protect herself. He was locked inside his own mind and it was much too late for him to escape.

'_You don't dare enter my mind, Charles Xavier, and think that you can rearrange what I think,' _the Phoenix whispered with a smile on her face. _'The key is in your hand, but you'll only be able to use it to escape your own mind, when I seal you in the back of your head. You'll never escape this prison.'_

'_Jean, you got to understand,' _Charles thought, a painstaking look in his eyes.

As it turned out, she understood better than anyone else. Much like the Phoenix had been for so many years, Charles Xavier became a prisoner of his own mind.

* * *

><p>Harry Potter knew instantly that the lights were on for Charles Xavier but there was absolutely no one home. The green eyed young man took half of a step forward and he waved his hand in front of his head.<p>

"He's….he's….." Ororo thought.

"He brought it upon himself," Jean said and she closed her eyes. "Anyone who gets in my way will fell the full wrath of the Phoenix!"

"Yes, Jean, I understand that you're upset," Harry said, choosing his words carefully. He stepped towards her and he was outside the barrier.

He could have removed it and allowed her in. That might provoke her however.

"I've long since passed upset, Har," Jean whispered underneath her breath and she could feel the thumping in her head.

The final barriers that Xavier put up melted away. The problem was that her mind wasn't assimilating with the powers that she had. There is a thumping that could be heard and the thoughts of everyone near her went into her mind.

"STOP IT!" Jean yelled suddenly.

'_Calm down,' _a quieter voice whispered in the back of her head and the redhead shook her head, trying to return back to some sense of reality.

Jean did calm down and she folded her arms, breathing in and out. She calmed herself down a little bit more.

"I've long since gotten past upset, this world…it feels like it's a nightmare," Jean whispered underneath her breath.

"It can be a nightmare," Harry agreed with her, he didn't doubt this at all. "Only if you allow it to be a nightmare."

"It is one," Jean said and she shook her head and tried to keep her head up.

"The power of the Phoenix is immense, but you can learn to control in," Harry told her and Jean's eyes flashed to him.

"I know that I can control it, I was born to control the awesome power of the Phoenix."

Time returned to what it should have been, with the Phoenix fading from reality.

"When I return, it will be only when the world is doomed and needs change, and I will change it!" The Phoenix yelled and she disappeared into a flash of fire.

The spot where she was glowed with an immense heat and left a trace. Harry established a tracking beacon seconds before she was able to disappear into the night.

"Say what you want about her, but she can make an exit," Kara whispered in awe and she nudged Claire, who nodded.

Claire had heard rumors of what the Phoenix Force and what it could do. Hearing the rumors and seeing things up close and personal were two different things. Her nerve endings tingled by being so up and close to this amazing cosmic power.

"You were blown away from the power it gave off, weren't you?" Kara asked her and Claire nodded in response.

"Yes, I was," Claire agreed with Kara and she shook her head after a half of a second. Her heart beat quicker.

She took a moment to collect her thoughts; she needed a lot more time than normal to collect her thoughts. Claire walked over and saw Harry looking into the distance.

"You're going to go after her, aren't you?" Claire asked.

"What do you think?" Harry asked her.

Claire's mouth shifted into a grin. "I don't think, I know that you're going to do it."

"And he will do it," Kara said with confidence. If the Phoenix really wanted him out of the way, she would destroy him.

That proved that the Phoenix Force did one thing. It had signaled out Harry as her mate. Kara commended the Phoenix Force on her amazing taste. She wouldn't have argued with her at any rate. Still she had amazing taste.

She looked at Harry and her eyes burned when she looked at Harry. Kara closed her eyes, realizing the signs and counted to ten. Her mother told her about this and she needed to get control.

Kara let out the breath that she held and she returned to control. Her breathing came in and out and Claire turned towards her, giving her a raised eyebrow for a look.

"Just got to calm down," Kara said. "This has been a tough day."

Claire understood what Kara was going through. She had come out of the box and then had been thrown right into the middle of an alien invasion. Then there was the attack of the Phoenix and the Kree disappeared to save themselves.

"It's just another Thursday night around here, really," Claire said and she put her arm tighter around her cousin.

"Yeah, I think that Earth isn't going to be dull as people might say it is," Kara said, and there was nothing other than excitement that brimmed through her body.

Claire laughed at that statement. "Trust me when I say, Earth is the furthest thing in the world from dull."

The amount of times that she almost died in her life, that was proof positive that Earth wasn't dull. Actually there was no almost about it last time. Claire figured that people might have gotten sick about hearing about that by now. She didn't bring it up even though her death was a defining moment of the development of her life.

"So?" Lily asked Harry abruptly.

"Jean is the only one who can remove the blocks," Harry informed them all.

"You mean you can't do it?" Ororo asked and Harry shook his head.

"Well I can, but it would be unwise to try," Harry said to her.

The Phoenix arranged it in such a way that if anyone but herself and Xavier tried to remove the blocks, it would completely fry his brain. It would be a danger to allow a brilliant mind such as Charles Xavier to be damaged. Even though Harry came to odds with the man, he couldn't really wish his potential fate on anyone.

"What about Scott?" Ororo asked, almost dreading the answer to that question.

Harry figured that the answers could be found somewhere in the city. He would rematerialize in a catatonic state completely in a little bit. He was sure that Jean did something to Scott to sink the message in, really forcefully to be honest.

* * *

><p>Gwen Stacy got the sense that her flight had gotten back too late. It was just one of those feelings of dread that she had and couldn't shake. Therefore she missed a lot of the show. She wasn't sure if she was disappointed or not because of that.<p>

'_Which might make me insane,' _Gwen thought when she made her way outside of the city limits.

There wasn't a hint of an alien invasion in the slightest. She had the suit all ready and everything and it was the heavy duty one. The one that had all of the firepower and it could do some real damage to these invaders.

She frowned, sliding across the streets. She spotted the SHIELD agents roaming around. Gwen felt herself nudged behind a barrier and they were talking.

"We got to get this cleaned up, no telling if the Kree is going to come back….."

"After what we saw, I think that not many of them made it out of there at time," one of the SHIELD agents commented.

Gwen frowned, that statement was curious. She decided that it was time to check in with her contact. The blonde typed in a brief message, hammering away at it on the keypad. Her message pretty much said what it needed to say.

**Do you mind telling me what's going on here?'**

There was a long pause and Gwen wondered if her hacker friend was available. The blonde shifted on her feet and bent on her knees. She waited impatiently and almost moved off to get some information.

There was more information that came in for her finally.

**Yeah, we've got a bit of a problem. Apparently, Miss Grey's powers came in to their fullest potential and in the worst way. I only got a few video images. I'm pretty sure that Harry can tell you more about it when you see him. He said that he will return my call in a minute, so if you see him before then, make sure that you ask him.**

Gwen was going to ask him. Harry mentioned that Jean was having some growing pains with her powers. Nothing like this, at least as far as she knew. Her hands dropped to her hips and there was a lengthy sigh in response.

'_Oh boy, it's going to be one of those days,' _Gwen thought and she craned her neck.

She saw Claire hovering in the air. It was obvious that Claire tried to find her as much as Gwen looked for Harry. That much was sure when Claire rushed to Gwen. The blonde took half of a step back.

"It's good to see you again," Claire said with a smile.

"I'm sure that it is," Gwen said and she had some questions. "Where's Harry?"

"He's over there," Claire informed her. "You missed a lot of the action."

Gwen smirked when she looked over at the aftermath. "I figured about that much. If you could fill me in, it'd be great."

Almost immediately, Gwen could tell that there was a whole lot that she missed. That much was judged by the look of pained amusement crossing Claire's face.

Claire shook her head. "Well a lot's happened, but I'll try and do the best that I can."

"That's all that I ask from you," Gwen told the dark haired girl. She decided to cut to the chase. "Something happened with Jean, I knew that much."

Claire jumped into an explanation, her eyebrows furrowed in intense and heavy concentration. "The thing is that the Kree arrived, and they were after Kara and I…"

"Kara?" Gwen asked Claire.

"My cousin from Krypton," Claire explained and Gwen nodded.

The pieces from this situation slowly began to form in Gwen's mind. It was a wonder that she hadn't figured out what happened by now.

"That's what Harry found in the ship," Gwen muttered underneath her breath.

"Exactly," Claire said, and she ensured that Gwen was still listening. "Her ship was what accidentally signaled the Kree and lead to the alien invasion. We had a scuffle with the Kree and eventually Jean snapped."

"Oh that doesn't sound good," Gwen whistled.

She knew Jean Grey and she could be a pretty nice person. Unless she was provoked, which in that event, you better watch out. She was still a redhead and had a fiery temper. It was unwise to make her mad.

"It's not good, because it isn't."

Gwen smiled when Harry turned up. The two of them greeted each other, quickly, and discreetly.

"I really wish that we could be seeing each other again under better circumstances," Gwen said and she rushed over.

Harry swept her up into a strong hug, pulling her into it. He leaned in and gave her a kiss on the lips.

"So, did your ride work out well?" Harry asked and Gwen shook her head rapidly.

"Yeah, it's fine, thank you, I would have been over there for about a decade if you didn't hook me up," Gwen said, and sighed.

Being stuck in an International airport was not her idea of a good time. In fact she would go as far as to say it sucked hard.

"Claire said something happened to Jean," Gwen picked back up.

"Yes, Charles Xavier decided that it would be a good idea to block a portion of her powers, and not to slowly remove the blocks over time," Harry said and Gwen frowned deeply. "You know to allow the powers to seep out."

"Yeah, that would have been a better idea," Gwen said, crossing her arms underneath her chest.

"She took out the Kree, most of them at least, although some might have teleported off before she had her cosmic related temper tantrum," Harry said and frowned. "Exactly how many of them, I'm not sure."

It when without saying that he should be under the assumption that there was more than enough to come back and bite him and the rest of the world later. Therefore, Harry expected a replay of the Kree invasion sooner rather than later. They would worry about that later. Jean was first and foremost.

"I think," Harry said, pulling Claire in towards him. "It's time for us to take a trip to the Fortress."

Claire raised her eyebrow up to her forehead and nodded in agreement. She understood things perfectly.

"Gwen, this is Kara, Kara this is another one of my girlfriends, Gwen Stacy," Harry said, introducing the two blondes with each other.

"Well, Harry does have quite the taste in women," Kara said, with a smile on her face and she looked over Gwen.

It was then her X-Ray vision kicked in. It was accidentally kicked in of course. She averted her eyes, but a grin crossed her face.

**To Be Continued On October 9****th****, 2014. **

* * *

><p><strong>So, Jean doesn't take too kindly to certain people. Or maybe the Phoenix does, or maybe both. They are one and the same after all. <strong>

**It's time to track down Jean from the outer reaches of the universe in the next chapter. **


	7. Trials of the Phoenix Part One

**Chapter Seven: Trials of the Phoenix Part One. **

Jean Grey could feel a million thoughts or so it seemed buzzing through her mind. There was one thought that she felt with picture perfect clarity. The fact she had to teleport away from Earth when she did was for her own safety as much as the safety of anyone else. She didn't want to hurt anyone who didn't deserve it.

A few more seconds with her powers assaulting her and she would have taken down the wrong people. People who didn't deserve to be atomized. The redhead didn't think that she could handle that at all. She gave a cough when she looked around.

She was standing in a room that appeared to be in the middle of nowhere. Jean could still hear the collective voices of the universe. The only difference was that they grew fainter the more often that she heard that.

The redhead didn't know what exactly to believe now. All that she could tell was that she needed to find a way out of here and quick.

The easiest thing might be to figure out a way out of here. There was only one problem and that was that she needed to figure out where here was. The redhead's pulse quickened and she realized how screwed that she might be without getting a hold of these powers. The universe was a vast and insane place.

"Do not despair, Jean Grey."

Jean turned around and she turned around to see an exact duplicate of herself standing across from her. There were a couple of subtle differences, for one the double looked to be more untamed and she wore a green set of robes with a Phoenix emblem on it. Her arms crossed together when she stared at Jean.

The two of them locked onto each other, almost going nose to nose with each other. Jean almost gasped when it all came to her.

"You're the Phoenix," Jean whispered to her, she wished that she sounded a little less in awe. It made her come across like an emotionally challenged schoolgirl more than anything else.

The redhead in front of her frowned. "No, not exactly, at least not entirely. You're the Phoenix."

"But am I you, aren't you?" Jean asked her, frowning. She wasn't able to make complete heads or tails of what was going on. All it accomplished was giving her a terrific headache that caused her to split from ear to ear. She thought that her head might explode.

The Phoenix placed her hand on Jean's cheek and there was unprecedented warmth.

"Yes and no, it's quite the frustrating paradox, isn't it?" the Phoenix asked Jean and Jean's eyes narrowed into pure slits of energy. The sigh escaped from her lips when she looked back at the Phoenix.

"Yes, I would agree," Jean told the Phoenix, wondering what exactly the Phoenix had up her sleeve.

"The truth was that you came into your full power, far later than I would have liked, a part of you has been locked away for an extremely long time," the Phoenix told her. "And I have been locked away along with that part. I've learned a lot but there is so much that I'm uncertain of."

Jean snorted in response. It was an extremely unlady like reaction but she simply couldn't help herself. It was amazing how much this entity reflected her own thoughts and insecurities.

"Join the club, we have cookies," Jean told her double, a frown brushing over her face.

"If you say so," the double commented in her most crisp tone. "But, you cannot hope to control the most awesome power the universe has to see until you can control your own emotions."

Jean was about ready to say that she was a teenager and teenagers were notorious about having the lack of abilities to control their own emotions. For some reason, she couldn't really bring herself to bring up that excuse. It was on the tip of her tongue.

"What do you want me to do?" Jean asked, she was at a loss to what this mystical force wanted to do. She was losing whatever sense of her mind that she had.

"Look around you and tell me what you see."

Feeling entirely stupid and a fair bit foolish she did look around. Jean could see the entire universe and there were specks of dots. She could see the tapestry grow and there were flashing lights. Some of them were white and others were black. The redhead brushed her hair out of her eyes.

"So what do you see?" the figure asked her.

"I see the universe, in all its glory," Jean whispered and she would be denying herself if she didn't think that said universe was pretty glorious. And it was pretty horrible as well.

The redhead wondered if she could even bother to understand things in time.

"You will in time and believe me you have plenty of time, we will have plenty of time," The Phoenix said. "But a fair warning, if I've learned anything in the past eternity it's…"

"The more you know, the less you understand," Jean muttered.

That was a piece of advice that Harry gave to her a long time ago. It had to do with his studies of magic. That suited the situation that she was in.

"It is wise to listen to that advice and heed it well," The Phoenix agreed, extending her hand out. The redhead manifestation placed her hand on Jean's face. "No matter how much you want to argue this, there's one thing that you can't deny. We are one."

"We are one," Jean Grey whispered.

Jean Grey was the Phoenix and the Phoenix was Jean Grey. There was really no way around that one. The barrier between the two cracked and the redhead wondered what the next move would be.

"Understand that you'll have power and embrace it, embrace it completely," the Phoenix whispered, an intense flicker going through her eyes.

"Yes, I'm embracing it completely," Jean said.

"We can begin at the most ideal spot," the Phoenix said.

Jean cleared her throat and coughed. "If you're going to say that the most ideal spot is the beginning, I'm not going to speak to you, ever again."

"That would be impossible for you to sustain that level of anger for a part of yourself," the Phoenix said in a matter of fact voice. "A part of yourself that is much larger than you think."

Jean regarded this thoughtfully. There have been times where she did feel woefully incomplete. Her emotions were there and at the same time they weren't there. She felt that heavy disconnect that might have caused her problems.

"Do not despair we will heal. It may take long, but we will heal."

X-X-X

Ororo Munroe could not dispute one fact and that was the last few hours had been hectic. First she saw the official chosen leader of the X-Men disappear before her eyes. There were words that he might have appeared somewhere in the desert, and the X-Men were leaving to go check up on that now.

It could have been seconds in the real world from between the time he reappeared and now. Much more time could have passed on the other hand. Ororo's deep frown continued to go over her face.

The more that she knew the less that she understood.

Harry showed up and that caused her expression to lighten.

"I really wish that one of these times we can get together and it wouldn't have to be in the midst of one of the great tragedies that seem to define the lives of everyone," Ororo said and she took a deep breath. "I mean, it's not like I don't appreciate seeing you."

"I just seem like the harbringer of bad news," Harry commented with a smile.

Most of his dates ended with someone trying to kill him or his date or both.

"Yes, you do…..no offense," Ororo said. "Did you have any luck finding out where Jean disappeared to?"

"Not yet, but we will," Harry confirmed to her. "I've got a tracking beacon tagged to her. The problem is that the universe is vast and she could be anywhere."

Ororo didn't want to say it because it sounded so utterly and completely negative. She held her tongue and wondered if it would be a good idea to say that Jean could be in any time.

"And any time," Harry said, it was almost as if he pulled the words from Ororo's head, right into his mouth.

"I thought about that," Ororo whispered and there was a second where her fist clenched together. "I feel that we should help you…"

"I know that Jean is your friend, but I've got this one," Harry told her and he placed his arm on her shoulders calmly. He retracted it. "I think that you need to track down Summers and also keep Charles safe until we can undo what's been done."

"Do you think that's possible without Jean?" Ororo asked him.

She figured that it might not be. Ororo held out hope against it.

"Anything is possible, but it's unadvised," Harry warned her and Ororo raised her eyebrow. "But exactly how well it will work is another thing entirely. Regardless, I think that I'll stay in touch and let you know what happens, even if it's the worst."

Harry considered that it was possible that Jean placed a backdoor in Xavier's mind where he could escape the prison of his mind. Only though if a certain set of circumstances could be fulfilled.

"I'd wish you luck," Harry told the obvious leader of the X-Men. "But you're going to need more than that to deal with the storm that's to come."

Ororo smiled at the irony. "Well, I appreciate the sentiment all of the same. You would be the best person to get through to Jean."

Harry didn't answer and he parted ways with Ororo when she joined the rest of the team.

"So far there's been nothing," Harry told Carol when he turned to her, asking his unanswered question. The young man's hands ran over the spot where Jean disappeared. "The trail is still there, that's good."

"Why wouldn't it be there?" Carol asked, raising her eyebrow.

Harry smiled in response, placing his arms down along his side.

"You know, that's a good question," Harry replied to her. "But her cosmic power is a thing that could break even the best placed of tracking charms. There are one of two reasons why she hadn't done so yet."

Carol's interest and attention was on him. She was all ears and Harry continued.

"The first reason is that she didn't notice the charm when it was placed on her," Harry said, shaking his head and giving a long sigh. There was something about that statement that caused him to express some sort of doubt. "But I doubt that."

"I figured as much," Carol said and she frowned. SHIELD was in already. It amused her sometimes that SHIELD acted like a glorified cleaning crew. This was one of those times where it was extremely amusing to be honest with her. "So, what's the other reason?"

"She wants to be found, on some level," Harry said and he smiled. "But we'll know for sure when we head off to the Fortress."

Carol tried not to look excited but she really did want to take a look at the Fortress. Claire showed back up next to Harry and she watched her in amusement.

"You know, you can tag along if you want," Claire said to her and Carol's stance grew completely rigid. "If it's okay with Harry, that is."

Harry appreciated his input being requested. He waved his hand. "You know, it's your Fortress, so it's up to you."

He turned his attention to Gwen, who was looking underneath the pile of rubble on the ground. There was no one buried underneath the rubble as they feared. That was a really good thing, perhaps the first good thing to come out of this entire fiasco.

"So, are you coming along?" Harry asked.

Gwen shook her head. "No, you go on, I'm going to help with the clean up. And someone needs to help keep an eye on things if she decides to come back or the Kree does."

Harry hoped that the Kree had learned their lesson, if they were still out there. Something told Harry that might be too much to hope for.

"Okay, I'll see you later," Harry told her with a smile. "I'll be in touch."

Gwen appreciate that much, and she saw Claire, Kara, Carol, and Harry walking off. She hoped that they did well.

There appeared to be nothing of value down on the ground. Appearances could in fact be deceiving far more often than Gwen Stacy would ever care to admit.

X-X-X

Carol Danvers walked into the bright light, looking like a kid in a candy store. Harry looked amused by the look on her face and he looked towards her, a smile crossing his face. It was a light hearted smile when he nudged her.

The woman realized that she looked kind of dopey. Shaking her head, Carol returned herself to reality. Claire and Kara snickered when they looked at her.

"Well, I was caught off guard, it's an extremely amazing place," Carol said with a smile on her face.

"SWORD Headquarters is no less amazing," Harry said to her.

"Well that's true," Carol said and she took a good look around. She doubted that if she looked around for an hour, she would have picked up all of the wonders of the Fortress.

The large crystal array blinked and it powered the Fortress.

"Among the cleanest energy in the universe," Harry explained to her and Carol nodded. "Unfortunately human technology hasn't evolved enough where it wouldn't fry any electronics within a matter of minutes."

Carol frowned. "Exactly how close are we from evolving to meet this wonderful technology?"

"Closer than you think," Harry answered, placing his arm around her waist and guiding her over.

Carol looked around and they walked further towards a nice living area. It was a contrast to the rest of the cold and depressing Arctic outside. If she wasn't worried about the dangerous situation that she had to deal with, she would have thought about moving in and sticking around for a while.

"It's a nice place," Carol said with a smile. "The headquarters that any hero would want to have, it has everything."

"It's home," Claire said and she smiled.

"I'm glad that I meet your approval, Miss Danvers, it took a long time to get everything together," a voice piped up from within the Fortress.

It was a measure of how much extraordinary technology that Carol exposed herself to that she wasn't even batting an eyelash. She had been near AI. Some of it was a rather mixed bag and one of them when sentient and tried to kill her and the rest of the Avengers. That being said, this AI was far more sophisticated than anything she had ever seen in her life.

It was amazing, she could say this much. Especially when she saw an attractive blonde woman dressed in a snug white material appear before her. There was a bright smile crossing her face when she looked towards the group.

"This is Lara, my mother," Claire explained to Carol. "She helps make sure the Fortress runs smoothly."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Carol said and she could reach out and actually touch the AI. It was extremely solid, sophisticated, many, many years ahead of what humanity was capable of. Although not was far off as one would think.

"So, my sensors indicate that the Kree have vanished," Lara said and she could see the tense expression on Harry's face. She cut to the point. "But I can see that we have another problem that we have to deal with."

Harry whistled and looked on with a pained grimace on his face. "Yeah, you could say that we have a problem."

Lara was all ears for what Harry needed to say.

"It's Jean, her headaches…..well they were for a reason," Harry said and he launched into an explanation.

Lara listened to the explanation that Harry had, frowning deeply. She obviously knew that the Phoenix Force was a legend that was known the universe over. There had been many vessels that were rumored to hold the Phoenix Force over the years. The fact that Jean held the Phoenix Force was a cause for concern. The biggest cause of concern was the fact that most of the Phoenix Force avatars had grown insane because they did not hold the power.

"We've got a delicate situation," Lara whispered when Harry concluded his story. She knew that she spoke the obvious. "But, you said that you went in front of Jean several times at full power and she didn't attack you."

"Yes, I shouldn't have, but I couldn't stand by and allow her to suffer like that," Harry said. "It was almost like the Phoenix Force was a part of herself."

"It's likely," Lara agreed and she crossed her arms underneath her chest. "The Phoenix chooses avatars based on certain qualifications. One of them is a similarity to the most common human avatar that it uses."

There is a flash of light that appeared and there was a holographic image that popped up. A redhead dressed in green robes with a golden Phoenix emblem appeared on the screen.

"That looks like it could be Jean's twin," Carol whispered and it was uncanny.

If she wasn't told any different, she would have thought that it was Jean.

"It has a thing for redheads, doesn't it?" Harry asked Lara with a smile.

"Don't you?" Lara asked.

"Blondes are my preference, but it's a very close race," Harry commented and Carol smiled over by his side. "But that's not the point. It must be one distressed bird being in its cage, trapped there forever, and…"

He couldn't rant any more about what Charles Xavier did to the Phoenix. It wasn't because of any attempt of being malicious. It was just a poor level of understanding of the level of power that he had to deal with.

"All the power coming out at once, it was a wonder that Jean's brain didn't melt," Lara whispered seriously.

Harry shuddered. He thought about that. Perhaps Xavier did deserve the time out that Jean put him in, inside his own mind.

"But, I've got the tracking charm on her," Harry said and he held out the key that he keyed the charm into. "And I was hoping to use the power of the Fortress to amplify it to get an exact signal."

"I was expecting us to come around to that point," Lara said. "Plug the key in right here and we can begin to scan the universe."

Harry did so and all they had to do now was wait to see if their search bore any kind of fruit.

X-X-X

The search around the universe was extremely vast and it would take several hours before it got completed.

That left Kara and Claire off to the side of the Fortress with each other. They didn't have many opportunities to talk to each other when they weren't being killed or Kara was being checked over. Now that they were with something that resembled downtime, the two of them got to know each other.

"So, this is a normal day for you?" Kara asked.

"Actually, it's kind of slow," Claire said, with a knowing smile.

"It's a good thing that you were able to survive long enough for me to meet you," Kara said and her eyes shifted over, narrowing when they looked at Claire. The dark haired girl felt a shudder blow through her body. "You need to be more careful out there."

Claire decided not to bring up the very obvious fact of what happened recently against Doomsday.

"So, everyone has been telling me," Claire said. She recalled Harry's words to her. They rang true in her mind.

Invulnerable didn't mean that she was invincible. The battle with Doomsday brought her back down to Earth regarding that fact. She wasn't completely one hundred percent recovered from that but she was getting there. She was slowly but surely getting there. It was just a matter of time before she was back to her older self.

"So, what about Harry?" Kara asked and Claire's eyes turned to her cousin.

"What about Harry?" Claire asked her.

Kara gave her cousin a smile. "The two of you, you must have known each other for a long time. It's just a feeling that I got when you deferred authority to him."

"What are you trying to say?" Claire asked.

Kara had no idea whether her cousin was being dense or evasive. It was hard to tell at this point. She took a second to calm herself down and count to ten underneath her breath.

"Are you okay?" Claire asked her.

"No, just trying to figure something out," Kara said and her eyes looked at Harry, when he helped her aunt search the universe. "There's just something going on….that I don't get…..but he is amazing, isn't he?"

"He's Harry," Claire said in a soft and stoic voice.

Kara sighed, that really didn't explain anything to her.

"He's amazing," Kara commented and she realized that sounded bad. Sounded like she was some lovestruck teenager.

Okay she was a teenager and she was pretty lovestruck. That wasn't the point. She didn't need to sound like that. The blonde shook her head and allowed a lengthy sigh to escape her lips. She had been inside that stasis tube for way too long. It was starting to affect her mind.

She did feel a connection to Harry and the fact that he fought bravely in the face of certain danger. Danger she remembered could kill him within a matter of moments. That spoke out pretty well for his character.

"So, any luck?" Claire asked, pulling herself away from Kara, before she could ask any more questions about Claire's relationship with Harry.

"We'll know in a moment," Lara said and she closed her eyes.

Carol saw her go through star systems that she never heard of in her life. She would have to be honest. It was an extremely educational experience to go through the universe.

"I think we just hit the jackpot," Lara said and Harry could feel something when it popped up on the view screen.

Kara and Claire rushed over to get the better look.

"It's…..out in the middle of nowhere," Claire whispered when she looked at things. It wasn't a place where there appeared to be any hint of life. There wasn't even a dried up weed on the rock that they spotted.

"Not exactly out in the middle of nowhere," Kara said, she vaguely recognized the area that they had been placed into. It was a wonder that they popped up here of all places.

She waited for her aunt to confirm. "Yes, it's not in the middle of nowhere. It's somewhere, an area where many ships have gone through and never have returned."

"Kind of like some kind of alien Bermuda triangle?" Carol asked and Harry groaned. She turned towards him and frowned. "What's the matter?"

"You do realize that the only way to get in that area would be on a ship, something that has never been done," Harry said to the group.

"What about a portal of some sort?" Claire asked.

Lara shut that one down faster than a speeding bullet. "An admirable thought, but it honestly wouldn't work."

"Why wouldn't it work?" Claire asked with a frown.

"Well, it wouldn't be able to lock onto the location, it would just bounce us back because of the unique gravity in the area," Lara explained to her.

Harry had to admire Jean's ambition. What better way to be alone with your thoughts then to be in a place where no one can have any thoughts. Of course, there was just one problem with that.

She would be able to sense them coming. Harry thought of a spell that would mask all of their thoughts, but would that work against the Phoenix Force?

"It's ready though, isn't it?" Harry asked.

"It's ready and it should hold up," Lara said and she frowned. "Until it reaches the void zone and the ship gets sucked in."

Harry thought about it and made a decision based on the most logical course of action. "We're going to have to get as close as we can and I'll teleport to Jean."

"Will that even work in space?" Claire asked him, she thought about Harry getting ripped in half in the vastness in space.

It was not exactly a calming thought to have.

"First time for everything," Harry admitted, shrugging his shoulder and he waved his hand for Lara.

A ship rose out of the ground. It was created thanks to various spare Kryptonian parts that had been left on Earth.

Carol's eyes widened like saucers when she looked at the ship. There was a wide smile over her face and Harry leaned towards her, with a smirk on her face.

"So, do you think that you can fly it?" Harry asked her.

Carol just smiled in response. It was go time.

**To Be Continued On 10/13/2014. **

**Jean having a heart to heart with herself was amusing. **

**I'm trying to bend over backwards to not come across too critical of Charles Xavier, because every time you come across the least critical of a character, you must be bashing them. A stupid term used by stupid people that's stupid. **

**And I'm sure I just pissed off someone with that rant. But I wouldn't be doing my job properly as an author if I didn't piss someone off. **

**So, Harry heads off to meet with Jean, and tame the Phoenix in our next chapter. **


	8. Trials of the Phoenix Part Two

**Chapter Eight: Trials of the Phoenix Part Two. **

* * *

><p>The ship was out and powered up and ready to go. Carol stood in awe of the ship to take in every single angle of it. There might have been a few more buttons than she was used to normally. That being said, she had flown some extremely high tech vehicles before. Some of them had been alien vessels that had been left on distant places that SWORD had to bring in.<p>

So she was pretty certain that she was going to be able to fly this particular ship. The bright light in the Fortress engulfed them all and Carol brushed her hair from her eyes. The point was that she was ready to go no matter what. Excitement brimmed through her eyes at the thought of the unknown she was about to encounter.

Harry paced back and forth; he looked like he psyched himself for something. Kara followed his progress with her eyes, frowning when he continued to move back and forth. She opened her mouth to say something and Harry turned towards her.

"Sorry, I just figure that the Phoenix will be completely dangerous in the mood that she's in," Harry told Kara.

It was an honest concern with what he felt and Kara didn't believe that Harry was completely worried. And why should he be worried?

Kara frowned when her eyes locked onto Harry's. "But she isn't dangerous around you."

"The first time, she was able to pull herself away from hurting me," Harry said and he stepped over to check the progress of the ship powering up. They were going to need a lot of juice to conclude this mission and bring everyone home safely. "The next time, I might have to assume that there's a chance that she might not pull away in time."

Harry hoped that he didn't have to deal with this. A fight between the Sorcerer Supreme and the Phoenix would be a sight to see. He hoped that it never happened. The collateral damage would be immense and catastrophic.

'_And not to mention I'll be able to get in there and have to fix the minefield that Jean's mind has turned into,' _Harry thought. _'Charles, if you ever have a chance to wake up, I swear I'll be having words with you. Because that was an awkward and sloppy way to fix her mind and you failed big time.'_

Claire waited, she had been through a few journeys like this. None had this personal nature to it. The ship that she, Harry, and her mother put together was an extraordinary beauty. She ran her hand over the sleek surface of the ship, feeling it, and smiling deeply at how well put together it was.

"So, are you ready to do this?" Harry asked her.

Claire barely heard him speak. She was caught so off guard. "Yeah, I'm ready to do this."

"Are you sure…."

"My vitals are one hundred percent and I actually have the potential to be more powerful now after last time," Claire said. "But I think that I should be asking you the question. I mean, you're the one who is going to throw himself right into the heart of the Phoenix when she's at her worst."

Harry knew and he recalled. He thought that he had been through many dangerous battles before. This one might have topped them all.

"I'll be good, trust me," Harry told Claire.

"I trust you, I trust you," Claire muttered underneath her breath.

"And I do too," Kara said and she walked towards him, confident brimming through her eyes. She positioned herself on Harry's right with Claire taking his left. "We'll get through this, all of us, and Jean will come back home."

"Yeah she will," Claire agreed. Jean was her friend too and she hated to see what would happen to her.

Claire could feel herself tense up a little bit more. What started as a routine alien invasion had gotten even more intense.

"I go in there, try and fix her mind, and hope that I can convince the Phoenix to come on home," Harry replied.

"And Jean as well," Claire reminded her, but Kara cut him to remind Claire of something.

"Jean Grey is the Phoenix and the Phoenix is Jean Grey," Kara told her. "It's more than just your standard avatar…..well I'm sure that Aunt Lara can explain it better than I can. Because it's really hard to explain and there is so much about this that I don't even understand."

"The Phoenix and Jean have become one and their minds and experiences have merged," Lara commented.

"And there have been past hosts of the Phoenix Force, and they have taken their life experiences to feed into the Phoenix Force," Harry commented, adding onto what was said. "But many of them resemble Jean and the Phoenix as well."

"You have to wonder if Jean is a reincarnation of a past avatar of the Phoenix Force," Kara suggested and Harry turned towards her. "It was just a thought."

"It is just a thought," Harry agreed with her.

"The ship is also charged up, so you're ready to go," Lara informed them.

The ship lifted up, where the top of the Fortress inclined, ready for lift off. A vortex appeared in front of them.

"Just an economic way to get us past the gravitational pull of Earth without burning up too much fuel," Harry explained to Carol and Carol's jaw set and she nodded in response.

"Okay, that's all well and good you know," Carol said nodding her head and her frown got deeper. "But I've got a question."

"Just the one?" Harry asked her.

"Just the one," Carol agreed with him. "So, exactly how dangerous is this?"

"I wouldn't think that you'd be the one to back off from a dangerous mission," Harry told Carol and the blonde looked a bit flushed.

"I'm not backing off, trust me on this one," Carol said, shaking her head. "But…..you know, I don't fancy being killed by your mother if something happens to you."

"First of all, nothing's going to happen to me, trust me," Harry told her. Carol frowned at the insistence of him telling her to trust him. "And I've been through far more dangerous adventures than this."

"He has," Claire confirmed without missing a beat.

"Wait, a minute, how do you know that?" Kara asked, folding her arms and giving her cousin a questioning gaze. She would have pushed on further with her interrogation, but Harry cleared her throat.

"Ladies, save it for later, remember what's important," Harry said.

Kara realized now that he had such a commanding presence that it was hard to say no to him. She gave him a reassuring smile that she would drop the matter, at least for right now. Even though it was far from over.

Claire followed Kara into the ship in good grace.

"Brace yourself for launch," Lara warned them, and Carol sat herself in front of the pilot's seat. It was an area that she felt like she was comfortable in and she had plenty of room to stretch her legs when she smiled.

"Oh, I'm ready," Carol commented, even though there were a lot of dangerous things that they could encounter in the wild and open space.

The portable Lara AI shifted in Harry's hand and he held up. The ship launched through the vortex out into space.

* * *

><p>"Get the ship as close as you can Carol," Harry told her when they were out of Earth and into the wild and open frontier of space.<p>

There were parts of space that were much like the wild west were years ago on Earth. Pretty much untamed and it was where the outlaws ran the land. There was some well-meaning do-gooder always who intended to help out. They didn't get too far. Most of the time they got squashed by the outlaws that truly roamed free.

"Right," Carol said, pleased to see that the ship was running like a charm. The problem was that she wasn't sure exactly how much of it was her work.

"It needs a navigator just in case the manual systems fail," Lara said and she answered the unasked question. "There is a seventy nine percent probability that that could happen."

"I've never been a woman who really likes playing the odds," Carol said and she left her statement hanging.

Kara jumped in to give a few words in response for her. "That's some really awful odds."

"Not really," Harry said and he got many critical eyes on him. "I've fought way worse."

"Yes, didn't you somehow do something that was considered over a one hundred percent rate of failure and you still succeed somehow?" Claire asked.

"I should point out that it's impossible to achieve more than one hundred percent, even by wizard math," Harry commented and he kept his eyes peered forth towards the wild and weary frontier of space. "Even if that kind of math is skewed beyond all belief because I obviously succeeded."

Harry Potter always beat the odds, even when the odds were against him. He slapped the odds back down to Earth.

"The signal grows stronger, we're getting closer, and closer to the point where Harry needs to eject," Lara said. "And this plan…..I shouldn't go forth with the probability of how likely this is not to succeed."

"With Harry or without Harry," Claire said and she stopped and paused. "On second thought, Mother, please keep it to yourself. We need to keep our heads on our shoulders.

"And I should go over the plan if the Phoenix has a freak out," Harry said.

"What's the likelihood of that happening?" Kara asked him and Harry's eyebrow raised when he locked eyes onto her. "Actually do I want to know the answer to that?"

"No," Harry said and he sighed. "We should go over the plan regardless."

Harry paused for a second and he made sure that Carol was listening closely because she was important in causing the plan to go off without a hitch.

"If Jean has a freak out, activate the warp drive on this ship, it will transport you back into the Fortress, no questions asked," Harry said to her. "And I'll stop her from following the trail by any means necessary."

"But…" Claire protested. She only got out that word before Harry silenced her.

"Any means necessary," Harry repeated himself, and he hoped about as much as anyone that he didn't have to go down that road. It seemed even more likely by each passing moment.

'_This is an insane situation no matter what way I look at it,' _Harry thought to himself. _'Jean shouldn't have gone through what she went through.'_

He was dealing with a teenage girl who had hormones. That was a very dangerous battle to go into without great cosmic powers. Adding the great cosmic powers onto the hormones and it was a situation that Harry didn't know whether or not he was going to get out of alive.

Stay strong, that's what he reminded himself of. He had to stay strong and he would be there. He could hear a rumbling sound ahead of him and the asteroid hovered really close towards him.

'_Okay, if I don't get out of this alive, then so be it,' _Harry thought, clutching his fists together and he allowed a calming breath to pass out of his body.

"We're coming close to the Void Zone,' Carol said and she shifted her eyes towards Harry.

"We're right on the other side of the exact spot where many ships have been lost through the vastness of space," Lara continued.

"And Jean is on the cluster of asteroids on the other side," Harry commented.

Something had been fired into space from some long forgotten alien civilization that caused the warp to open, the void that sucked pretty much everything in. Harry got to his feet, and he looked like a world class swimmer that was about to take the plunge.

"Good luck," Kara said.

"Thank you," Harry said, not trusting himself to say that luck was something that he didn't need right now.

He needed far more than luck. His fist clenched together and a deep breath passed through his body.

'_Okay, no problem, I can do this,' _Harry thought to himself.

He had been through many trials.

"Remember the warp drive," Harry said and he looked over his shoulder. "And one more thing, no matter what, don't try and follow me there. You're safe now but only if you stay put."

"But are you?" Claire asked him.

"I'll be fine," Harry said. "Trust me."

Claire bent her head down and wanted to bury her head into her hands. Perhaps it was just her, but when someone said to trust them, it filled her with a great deal of uneasiness.

Harry was gone in a flash and now they waited.

"I will monitor for any cosmic activity, and there's an extraction plan in process if Harry gets in over his head," Lara explained to them. She didn't think that it would happen herself. It never hurt to be prepared.

"Wait, does he know about this?" Kara asked and she could see the holographic image of her aunt smile.

"It may have slipped my mind when discussing it with him," Lara informed Kara and there was a second where a devious smile crossed her face.

* * *

><p>Jean Grey was camped out in the vastness of space on the Asteroid, her eyes closed as the sensations of the universe came around here.<p>

'_Why here?' _Jean asked her.

'_You tell me,' _the Phoenix thought to her. _'You're the one who brought us here, I just offered you the power to bring you across the universe.'_

Jean sighed, she knew that she was the Phoenix or rather the Phoenix was a part of her. A huge part of her as it turned out. The redhead wished to rip her hair out of the top of her head in deep thought.

'_There was a lot of life who passed through this part of the universe and never returned,' _the Phoenix explained to her. _'If you listen closely, you can hear the echoes.'_

'_I've heard enough echoes of the deceased,' _Jean thought and she sat cross legged on the asteroid. A warm glow wrapped around her when she breathed in and out. Her fingers stroked through her hair and she smiled.

She would be okay, everything will be okay. Jean crossed her arms and sensed that there was something close by.

'_If that's the case, then they're in trouble, that void has claimed every ship that's passed through it,' _the Phoenix thought to Jean and Jean got to her feet, her legs shakily moving. She nearly fell down on the ground.

The redhead felt like her head was going to crack open from the pressure.

'_I've got to save them, whoever they are,' _Jean said, but she didn't know how to completely hold onto her powers.

She looked deep inside her mind and found the broken locks. Her powers scorched through the gates and left her mind like something that resembled burning rubble. The redhead hitched in a nice breath in her body.

That would explain the apparent split personality thing.

'_What did you do to me, Professor Xavier?' _Jean asked her.

'_It's going to be okay,' _the Phoenix thought to her and Jean closed her eyes, feeling the agony burn deep into her body.

'_I wish I can believe you,' _Jean thought in her soft spoken voice when she looked in on herself.

From her perspective she saw her more primal twin staring at her. There were many similarities, and many differences.

"We can be one and we can ascend if you just open your mind and allow me to fix it," the Phoenix whispered and she leaned forward, kissing Jean on the top of her head.

Harry Potter appeared on the asteroid with a soft pop, protective spells around him to save from the harsher elements of space.

"Jean," Harry whispered to her and he approached her. He swept her into a strong hug.

Jean was caught off guard by Harry's sudden appearance. His arms tightened around her and she felt herself get drawn into his strong body. There was a moment where she stared at him.

"How?" Jean asked him breathlessly.

"Well, you should know that I can get to places that I shouldn't be with alarming enough regularity," Harry said.

Jean rested her head down onto Harry's shoulder. She could feel her legs grow weak underneath her. She struggled to meet his green eyes.

"I'm a wreck, there's no need to sugarcoat it," Jean whispered and she could feel the rush of emotions return to her.

She thought that she would be safe here but the whispers and the echoes still were alive deep within that void. There was a horrible thought that they might have been kept in a sustained state of life and suffering for as long as they were there.

Jean nearly opened her mouth to scream.

"You're just beside yourself Jean," Harry said and he was pretty sure that he was one of the few people who were able to see Jean and the Phoenix side by side.

"He is one of a kind," the Phoenix said. Most people seemed to be in awe of her but there was a lot of awe that flashed through her eyes. The redhead managed to keep herself tempered and breathed in and out. "And he might be the key to putting ourselves back together the right way, the way that it should be."

"Are you sure that he could do that?" Jean asked, she didn't want to get anyone's hopes up, especially her own.

"It's worth a try," the Phoenix said and they turned to him. "He isn't the youngest Sorcerer Supreme ever for nothing you know."

Her hand rested on his chest and she slowly trailed the area around his abs. There was a soft and sultry smile that appeared on her face.

"And he's supreme in other things," the Phoenix said, keeping her eyes fixed on Harry, as her more mundane twin did.

"Take my hands, both of you take my hands," Harry said and he hoped that this would work.

He knew that the extraction plan was in place if the Phoenix had a cosmic temper tantrum.

"I…..I don't know about this Harry," Jean muttered, sounding more like a little girl more than her confident adult self.

"It'll be okay," Harry said, cupping her chin and he brought his lips down onto hers. She met his lips in a searing passion and wondered, perhaps that he was right and perhaps things would be okay.

The two of them broke free of the kiss and the Phoenix stood beside Jean.

"Once you become more liberated, then you will be able to achieve greater heights," the Phoenix commented, lightly running her hand over Jean's head and causing her to tense up. "Trust me, let him in and fix what is broken."

Jean hesitated to give Harry the go ahead. He didn't push her. He made sure that she was traveling at the pace that was comfortable to her. His strong arms wrapped around her.

"Just relax, it will be good," Harry whispered into her ear and she closed her eyes. "You need to just let it go, and I'll be here. You won't hurt anyone as long as I'm here."

"No, I won't hurt you," Jean commented and his arms snaked around his body, pulling him in. The two of them met in the center with a simmering kiss with each other. The redhead's hot tongue inched its way into his mouth and Harry smiled.

His hand ran all over the small of her back and Jean closed her eyes. She could feel all of the emotions that she felt was there. With Harry's touch, they were somewhat more manageable. The Phoenix stood beside her and placed her hands on the other side of Harry.

"When the two of you join, then you will have the strength where we can become one," The Phoenix whispered, giving Harry the assist that he needed to fix the entangled mess that was Jean Grey's mind.

The redhead's breathe hitched deep in her body and Harry's tongue brushed into her mouth. The two of them exchanged what was an extremely passionate kiss with one and other. Neither of them willingly backed down.

Harry smiled and he allowed himself to access the soft flesh around the area of her neck. He continued to kiss all the way down the back of her neck.

"That's it Harry, please, more," Jean begged him and his mouth touching her caused her to light up.

"If you want more, just let it out," Harry said and Jean pushed Harry back onto the Asteroid, straddling him.

"Are you sure that you want me to let it out?" Jean asked with a sweet glow emitting from her body. Her finger brushed against Harry's chest, running circles around it. "You know, my very best can be extremely powerful."

"Yes, my love, I know that it is," Harry told her and he cupped her sweet ass from behind. He ran his hands all the way down her body.

"I think that you know what I'm capable of," Jean said and she felt herself excited about the possibility of what they could do.

For the first time she was free, free to be everything that she could be. And Jean took advantage of that, removing his shirt from his body.

"Oooh, that's for me isn't it?"

"It's for you, if you know what to do with it," Harry told her with a smile on his face.

"That's what I've always liked about you, so confident, so assured of yourself, not in anyone else's shadow but your own," Jean said. "Make me feel everything Harry, now that I can. I want to feel everything."

"Don't worry," Harry said and he smiled at her. "You will."

Their clothes disappeared for a brief moment and the two of them, three of them if you counted the Phoenix, had all of the room in the universe to maneuver.

* * *

><p>Carol drummed her fingers nervously. She hated to say this, but no news was really bad news when she thought about it. Her arms reached up when she held them up.<p>

"There's no cause for concern, if that's what you're wondering," Lara said to her.

That didn't ease Carol's anxiety at all. "But there's not any cause to not be worried, is there?"

"It's Harry, you know that he'll be fine," Claire said, and she got to her feet. "Maybe if I go out there and check….."

"No, Clara," Kara told her cousin. She nervously placed her hands on her cousin's wrist. "You said it yourself, Harry will be fine."

Claire agreed, he would be fine. The problem was that Harry Evans had this knack of getting himself into trouble. Sorcerer Supreme or no Sorcerer Supreme, fighting an extremely cosmic force such as the Phoenix would be like poking an ill-tempered dragon in the eye with a stick. It might not really end too well for anyone involved.

"He'll be back, he'll be fine," Claire muttered to herself.

"If he's not back in ten minutes, I recommend that we pull off that extraction plan that you mentioned," Carol said.

"You and I are on the same minds, but we should give Harry some more time," Lara said, she wasn't about to count Harry out.

There was a huge burst of energy that flowed through the ship. It nearly knocked Kara out of her seat.

"We better get ready to get out of here, if that's what I think it is," Carol said, and she was hesitate. Her hand placed on the control for the warp drive and she was about ready to transport herself out.

"We're going to not leave without Harry," Lara said.

Claire, Kara, and Carol suddenly become transfixed by the powerful images that settled in their head.

"I think that Harry managed to put Jean's mind back together," Carol muttered. She resisted the urge to ask if the ship had a cold shower.

It was also pretty difficult to concentrate when she visualized herself in some of those positions.

"The asteroid they were on just exploded," Claire muttered, in shock and she saw the climatic moments of what caused it to explode.

"Um, I'd make a joke about the Big Bang, but I think that we were all thinking the same thing, weren't we?" Carol asked, and she waited, there was no Harry or Jean showing up.

Lara had been knocked completely off line. Claire realized that within seconds.

"Mother, mother?" Claire asked and she reached over.

Her mother's systems crashed for a second and needed to reboot themselves. Claire was about to jump start the process, but Lara returned. Her image looked a bit more flushed than normal. Otherwise she was back to a functioning capacity.

"They may have destroyed the Vortex as well or sealed it," Lara commented. Despite being an AI, she was not immune to the mental images that got projected when those two finished.

"That shouldn't be possible, should it?" Carol asked, she was blown completely off guard.

"Carol, Carol, Carol, you should know by now better than anyone else…I always thrive on the impossible."

Claire and Kara nearly jumped up when they saw Harry appear in the midst of the ship. Jean stood next to him, wearing extravagant red robes with a golden Phoenix emblem upon it. Her arms rested calmly underneath her chest.

"Sorry about all of that," Jean said and she paused. "Well most of that."

Claire and Kara made eye contact with Jean and it was obvious there what part she wasn't sorry about. Their bodies still felt rocked by the energy that they all felt after the big finish.

"Are you three okay?" Harry asked and he amended himself when he was reminded that Lara was very much present. "Are the four of you okay?"

"Yes, we're fine, that was an anxious moment," Carol said.

The more that she thought about it, the more she realized that it might not have been even more than about ten seconds. It was a trick of time, an illusion of the senses.

"It was pretty intense, but that's how the bonding process went," Jean said, taking the seat next to Harry when he sat down.

"So, how many of the Kree did you take care of?" Harry asked her.

"Most of them managed to get out of harm's way, although I hope I took down some of the Alien Nazi bastards when I went full Phoenix," Jean said and she wrapped her arm tightly around Harry's shoulder, pulling him in towards her.

She felt a bit clearer now. There wasn't this huge part of her that was detached.

"So, they're going to figure out what went wrong, and they'll be back," Carol said.

"Of course they will," Kara said, and she folded her arms and legs together, situating herself on Harry's other side.

Claire was sitting in front of her, her eyes peering out into the vast and unlimited area that was space.

"Good, if they want to come, I'll bring the fight to them," Claire informed them. She took things personally given the fact that the Kree was after her family.

"We'll bring the fight to them," Kara corrected. She thought that the Kree would be better prepared this time.

You knew what though? So would they?

"I think it's time to head home," Harry said.

"We kind of left them hanging with the entire cleanup effort," Carol said, and she prepared to fly the ship.

Despite the fact that it was so high tech it was the easiest ship that she ever had the pleasure of flying, and it ran extremely smoothly. The blonde leaned back and activated the steering wheel. She blasted off into the portal.

They were back on Earth. It was time for the group to plot their next move and see where that would take them.

* * *

><p><strong>To Be Continued On October 16<strong>**th****, 2014. **

**I may have overdid the amount of times Harry told someone to trust him just a little bit. **

**Well when you destroy an asteroid and crash a Kryptonian artificial intelligence computer you know you've done something amazing. **

**Time to head back to Earth, it took eight chapters to get to the first lemon, but…..got to pick your spots wisely.**


	9. From the Ashes

**Chapter Nine: From the Ashes. **

* * *

><p>Harry would have to say that after everything, it was good to be home. Especially given that he was certain that there would be some dangerous enemy that would come back and attack him when they were all not around. He tried to limit the time that he was gone away from this realm, because that was just inviting trouble.<p>

The problem was that it was almost like the enemies of the Sorcerer Supreme stalked the realm in an attempt to pick the best possible time to attack. Harry sighed in relief when he figured that wasn't the case.

He defeated many of these enemies when he was merely the apprentice of the Sorcerer Supreme. Now that he was the Sorcerer Supreme himself, he'd like to think that he improved.

"I can't believe it, it's all together again," Jean whispered when she wrapped her arms around Harry.

She was the Phoenix, the Phoenix was her. All of the pieces were together in her mind as she thought they should be.

"You have the power now and you can control it," Harry said, spinning Jean.

"That's only half of the battle though," Jean told him. She pretty much knew where this one was going with him and she accepted. "You have to master the power that you have under control, otherwise you won't really get that far."

"Exactly," Harry told her, and there would be plenty of time for that.

He also had to work with Kara to see what the limits were from her powers. For some raw abilities, she held her own pretty well out there. Harry knew better than anyone else there was a difference between holding someone's own and a person excelling. He knew that Kara had the potential in her and hopefully it would be a lot less depressing journey to get there than it did when they tried to get Claire to reach her full potential.

Harry would work with her. He had been through this before. Kara had grown up on Krypton and she mentioned being through the solar power simulator. Therefore she had some base training down that Harry could build some kind of foundation off on.

"I think that a full physical is in order," Harry told Jean.

"Oh, is the full physical you gave me earlier not sufficient?" Jean asked him, wrapping her arms around him and there was a smile that crossed her face.

Things might have gotten really heated, really quick. They didn't however, at least not yet.

"Maybe if you get through this one," Harry told her and he smiled at her. "But the thing is, we need to make sure that you're completely healthy, and you're not going to have any problems with your powers."

"I see," Jean said, just because they felt that they were stable, it didn't hurt to have a second opinion.

It didn't really hurt that there was a doctor in the house and a beautiful blonde one at that.

"Just sit down, Jean, and I'll make sure that you're completely taken care of," Lara said and with that type of invitation, you couldn't really say no at all.

Jean sat down and waited patiently. Kara, Claire, and Harry walked into the other room. Carol joined the group seconds later.

The older blonde gave a long sigh and decided to cut to the chase. "You know, I've got a lot of explaining to do after everything that happened. I did a duck and run and I didn't fill in my supervisor on anything."

Harry agreed, he would have hated to see Carol go. He understood that she had certain responsibilities that she couldn't skirt around.

"I'm sure that she'll understand that it's a good reason why you did what you did," Harry told Carol with a smile on his face.

"And then I'm going to have some alone time with Fury, that's never fun," Carol commented.

"Oh, I'm sure that's going to be a party as usual," Claire whispered underneath her breath and Kara gripped her by the shoulder.

"We can't worry about anyone on Earth who might cause us trouble," Kara said. She didn't care about annoyances especially when she had to think about the big threat. "We got to worry about the Kree and when they come back."

"I'm already worrying about them and I'm working on a plan," Harry said, and he turned to Carol. "But we're going to have to collaborate on this one."

"Don't you have friends in high places that are working on defenses for Earth that have some really powerful teeth?" Carol asked and Harry raised his eyebrow at her. "The rumors are there, so there's no avoiding them."

"Where there's smoke, there's fire," Harry informed the blonde and she nodded. Her arms folded firmly underneath her chest. "But, yes, I've got some friends who are extremely interested in the survival of the world. Given that the end of the world is not good business for anyone and any aliens taking it over would mean no rights for the rest of our shortened lives."

Harry felt that he had to think like these people. The next time the Kree came by once they recovered via the Phoenix spooking them, they would regret it.

"I've got some ideas about what I want to do, just hope that I have enough time to implement them," Harry commented and his frown deepened on his face.

He had to keep a look at Jean, who was getting her physical. The chamber deactivated and she walked out.

"Clean bill of health," Jean said, throwing her arms around Harry's neck with a smile on her face.

"I'm glad that it is, and I knew it would have," Harry said, and Jean leaned in, giving him another passionate kiss.

Kara, Claire, and Carol stood, watching the two of them, and it was almost like as if Jean remembered that they had an audience.

More important than having an audience, she had something to do.

"I think that I better leave the X-Men," Jean commented to him, growing suddenly serious when she looked at him .She reached towards him and grabbed his hand tightly, squeezing it. "It's just, after everything that happened…"

"Are you going to bring Xavier out of his coma?" Harry asked her.

"He can only do that, when he properly understood everything that he put me through," Jean commented, and she almost felt bad.

A part of her didn't. As for Scott, well he would recover eventually. Jean wouldn't have to deal with him for a very long time. If he had not tried to attack her when her powers were getting out of control, none of this might have happened. He just had to jump in and be a hero. He paid for not thinking things through clearly like he might have if his emotions hadn't gotten the better of him.

At least that's what Jean was going to believe in her mind, that none of this was going to happen.

"I want to introduce you to some people," Claire told Kara and the blonde perked up with a smile on her face.

"Lead the way," Kara told her, and she enveloped Claire's arm in her.

"I better get back to base, to report on this," Carol told Harry and he smiled at her.

"I'll be in touch," Harry remarked to her and the two of them stared each other down.

"We will be," Carol agreed, and she walked back into the shadows.

Harry turned around and joined Jean in leaving to say her goodbyes to the X-Men. She planned to move in with Harry in the Evans Estate for some time. This just sped up the time table a little bit.

* * *

><p>Kara got a good look at the home that her cousin grew up in. The blonde had to admit when she approached the farm house that she had a few misgivings. However, they faded in a matter of moments. Her cousin, all things considered, did pretty good for herself. Those were the thoughts that were going through her mind when she approached the farm house.<p>

"CLAIRE!"

Claire turned around and they saw a dark haired girl and a girl with short blonde hair making their way down to face them.

"Hi, Chloe, Lana," Claire said, and both girls swept her into a crushing hug.

"I was worried that something happened to you," Chloe said, and Claire was glad that she had super strength and durability. Otherwise she was squeezed to death.

"Yeah, you were out there in the middle of that, and you punched that Ronan bastard in the face," Lana said with a smile on her face. "At least that's what we saw when the power finally came back on."

They weren't going to admit of the powerful force that rocked their bodies and made them rush for the nearest spot of privacy for relief.

"I did good out there, and don't worry, nothing is going to happen to me," Claire commented, putting her hands on her hips.

Chloe chimed in. "Oh yeah, what about the point where you d…"

Lana clapped her hand casually over Chloe's mouth. Chloe slowly bit down on Lana's hand in response. Kara raised her eyebrow, but said nothing. She was amused by the spectacle and also kind of curious about what this blonde girl was about ready to say.

"Aren't you going to introduce us to your new friend, Claire?" Lana said and she looked at the beautiful blonde.

It seemed like every single girl in Smallville might have been a little bisexual. Maybe just a little, in the sense that they preferred girls and one young man in particular.

"This is Kara, she's my cousin from Krypton," Kara said and both Chloe and Lana raised their eyebrows. "Kara, this is Lana Lang and this is Chloe Sullivan, they're my friends."

"Oh, it's a pleasure to meet you," Kara said with a smile on her face. "I'm sure that you three have had some very interesting slumber parties."

"Is that what they're calling them now?" Chloe asked, with a smirk. Then again, a certain someone normally joined them for their "slumber parties". "And it's good to meet you as well, Kara."

"Yeah, same here," Lana said and she smiled. "Your mother is inside, I'm sure that she'd be happy to see you."

Claire smiled, the thought was mutual. Especially considering the fact that she hadn't spoken to her mother ever since she died, so she was equally as excited to see her.

The quartet of girls made their way inside the Kent Farm House, and Gwen Stacy sat at the table.

"Harry said that he'd be here in a little bit," Gwen commented, and Chloe and Lana didn't seem surprised. "He needs to let me know about what's been happening. I got stuck helping with the clean up."

"Didn't you volunteer?" Chloe asked Gwen and Gwen's sharp gaze went over towards Chloe. Chloe shrugged her shoulders in response. "It was just a question, no need to bite my head off."

"Technically she didn't bite your head off, by not say anything, did she?" Claire asked, nudging her friend. "And I'm sure that Harry will be by in a little bit, he's just….well he's taking care of some things."

"We wouldn't want to delay him from his appointments," Lana said, with a knowing gaze towards Chloe.

"But I'm sure that we're just going to have to squeeze him in later," Chloe said, and she saw Martha there.

"Mom, it's good to see you again," Claire said, and her mother's smile could light up in an entire room. The dark haired girl walked over and threw her arms around her mother, pulling her into a sweeping hug.

"It's good to see you too, honey," Martha said, wrapping her arms tightly around Claire and pulling her in towards her. "How have you been doing?"

"I've just been completing my training at the Fortress, I actually came back to visit you, but I got side tracked by something," Claire said and her gaze turned towards the blonde standing next to her. "My cousin Kara, from Krypton. This is Martha Kent, my mother."

Kara, taking care not to break Martha, threw her arms around the redhead female. Martha was surprised, but she returned the hug.

"Thank you for taking care of my cousin for all of these years, when I couldn't look out for her," Kara said, and she meant that from the bottom heart. "You and your husband…..my mother knew that you would work out….where is….."

"Died of a heart attack years ago," Martha said, she stayed on the farm because Smallville was home. With Harry and Lily's head, they turned the Kent Farm into a booming business, they wasn't in the red for years to come.

"I'm sorry to hear about that," Kara said.

Martha knew she was and she returned, she healed from it a long time ago. Claire barely knew her father, but she turned out well because of it. So Martha felt like she had to be doing something right.

A knock on the door could be heard, and Harry turned up.

"And there he is, right on schedule," Chloe said, with a smile on her face.

"Did you doubt him at all?" Gwen asked.

"I've learned years ago never to doubt Harry, and if he's late, there's a good reason," Chloe said and Lana pulled out the chair between her and Chloe for Harry to take a seat down, which he did.

"Jean will be joining us later, Ororo, Kitty, and Rogue wanted to say their goodbyes properly," Harry said nonchalantly, and Chloe smiled. "She'll be back when they're done doing that."

"So, how have you been doing?" Martha asked Harry.

"I've been fine, how have things been going on the farm?" Harry asked her.

"They're running steadily as they should be," Martha informed him and she passed around the breakfast. Even though it could qualify more as an early lunch based on how things worked on this particular farm.

"I think that I better tell you what the hell has been going on over the past couple of days," Harry said, and Gwen smiled.

"Well that's the reason why we're all here," Gwen said to them.

"Yeah, Lois is going to be pissed that she isn't, one on the account that you're here, and one she's going to miss all the news she's been nearly killing herself over to find out," Chloe said and she added. "Figuratively speaking."

"With Lois, you can never tell," Claire said when she decided to occupy the seat next to Chloe.

It was a full snug table involving Harry and a bunch of females. In other words a pretty common sight.

"So, what's been going on?" Lana asked Harry, her curiosity slowly got the better of her. She really wanted to know what was going on after all that's happened.

"Well, I figure that I should let you in on it," Harry said and he launched into the explanation of what he had been doing.

It was a long story. It was a good thing that they all had plenty of time because Harry had an ample amount of ground to cover in a short amount of time.

* * *

><p>Carol met Harry outside of the entrance to the SHIELD facility that they were meeting Nick Fury.<p>

"This place is pretty low grade for a SHIELD HQ," Carol said, looking at it.

"There's some repairs being done at one of the main ones, and no one would expect Fury to meet someone here," Harry said, and he was glad that he had Carol here to back him up.

And they would not be alone, for Tony Stark joined the two of them on their way in.

"So, Fury decided to call you out as well, didn't he?" Harry asked.

"Since when isn't Fury calling something out on something," Stark said to him. "He really needs a vacation, or at least a long nap. Maybe a drink or two, that wouldn't go wrong."

"Given how much trouble that's gotten both of us into, I don't think that we'd be dragging him along," Carol said and Harry smiled when he lead the group in.

"Pepper says that your proposal is interesting, and I agree," Tony informed Harry. "Of course, she's running most of the operations because this Avenger thing is eating up far more time than it should."

"I know, just a consultant, but I'd figure that you could look over it and see if there's any holes my team missed," Harry said.

"I don't know why," Tony said, shaking his head. "Pretty much like having a high schooler proofread a college project."

"You can never been too careful when the safety of the entire world is on the line," Harry said. "The Kree will be back."

"I could have sworn that they got vaporized," Tony said.

Carol smiled at him. "Don't sound too eager about that Stark. I never thought that I had it in you."

Tony Stark waved his hand casually and calmly.

"That's not exactly what they meant and…..well there are many ways they could have survived that," Tony said. He had too many enemies come back from the dead and try to kill him. "Hopefully they won't be keen to try it after that X-Girl went all cosmic tantrum on them."

"Jean's got better control over her powers now," Harry informed them.

"So, the next time she attacks someone with her powers, it won't be an accident," Tony said and Harry nodded. "Okay, got you, and don't worry, I know better than to piss of a redhead. Or any woman for that matter."

"How long did it take you to learn that lesson?" Carol asked and she paused. "And more importantly, will it stick?"

Before they could give the answer to that question, the one and only Nick Fury arrived. He saw the two Avengers, well technically three even though Harry Evans could be classified as a part timer at best. Still he did have the ID card and assembled when his schedule permitted. When he wasn't off having adventures everywhere.

Then again, the only hero other than Harry that might have had more adventures would be the one and only Logan, better known as Wolverine.

Nick Fury focused on the trio that were there. The only consolation was that Lily Evans couldn't meet them for this meeting. That might have been a bad thing but one could argue that this was a good thing because she was fairly agitated with Nick Fury for obvious reasons.

"So?" Fury asked them.

"So, do you want the long version of the story, or the shorter one?" Harry asked.

Fury already knew that he wasn't going to like this given the attitude that Harry Evans already had. Which actually wasn't a bad attitude, it was just that his tone showed that he was going to be ready to fight.

"As much as you feel is necessary to tell," Fury stated calm, cool, and extremely collected. His eyes fixated on the young man ahead of him.

Harry launched into the story, pretty much given Fury a version of all of the details that he felt that the Director of SHIELD needed to know.

"She's stable," Harry concluded. "I have taught her how to control her powers and yes, I know that you don't like this Fury."

Carol snickered and Tony looked extremely amused.

"And how about the other thing that I know that you're working on?" Fury asked.

He wasn't too fond of the fact that Harry Evans had what amounted to a cosmically powered nuke at his disposal. SHIELD's equipment got a minor reading of what Jean Grey was capable of and it could have vaporized the Earth into ashes and rebuilt the people from scratch. That was how awesome her power was.

"The defenses, it's a work in progress," Harry said. "The Kree will be returning in greater numbers, and this time, they'll play for keeps."

The only problem with that was that Harry also played for keeps. He wasn't going to sit back and let someone take control of his planet. He didn't play that kind of game that easily.

"SHIELD should be kept in the loop because of this," Fury warned him.

Harry had his reasons for not keeping SHIELD in the loop. There have been moles and leaks in the organization in the past. Not to mention few too many of SHIELD's enemies had been further SHIELD agents.

"I'll let you know when I'm done," Harry said.

"I don't suppose that you know anything about this," Fury told Stark.

"No more than what Harry told you, and if he didn't, I signed a confidentiality agreement to keep my trap shut," Tony replied, and his gaze warned Fury not to go there. "Besides, SHIELD did a good enough job playing high tech janitors. So what's the deal?"

Tony Stark's role in this meeting was to play referee. But he was not going to be light on the banter, especially when Fury was asking for it.

"You better not be holding any information," Fury warned the group.

Harry sighed. "You'll know and we've fortified the defenses around the planet and also around Mars."

Harry wondered if he should tell Fury that he had a small base on Mars and also on the Moon. The thought crossed his mind. He decided not to because the very fact that he might bring it up would give Fury a stroke. So he didn't go there.

"Go back to SHIELD, get up and running, prepare your agents with what I've told you," Harry said. "I prefer not to have Jean solve every little problem, even though she's capable of it."

Harry also thought that he preferred not to solve every problem. Especially with magic because that set a dangerous precedent, and there was also the fact that his responsibilities as Sorcerer Supreme was far and wide.

"SHIELD will do what we have to do," Fury said and it was almost like he had a cutting remark towards Harry Potter.

Nothing came and this meeting wrapped to a close.

* * *

><p>Carol and Harry left about an hour after the meeting. It was both frustrating and productive at the same time.<p>

"I'm taking it that your defenses are further along than you made Fury believe," Carol told him.

"Yes, I just want to see what SHIELD can put together," Harry said. "I don't really trust everyone there."

Carol knew the reasons as to why he did that.

"I think that the real adventure is to come," Carol said and the two of the made their way to a park area where their ride was waiting or would be waiting. It was running really late. "And we've been through a lot here."

"Yes, a lot of adventures," Harry commented and the blonde leaned back against a tree, with a smile over her face. "And you said it best, we seem to be in situations together that almost killed us. Then any time together where we won't get killed.

Carol looked somber about that. "Yeah, I know."

That was something to be said about that.

"Maybe the two of us should do something to correct that," Harry said. "Do you have anything going on Friday night?"

"Not to the best of my knowledge, no," Carol said, folding her arms underneath her chest and wondering where this was going.

She did have an idea but she didn't want to jump the gun in case she was wrong.

"So maybe the two of us should go out, and get to know each other a bit better, outside of a life threatening situation," Harry replied to her.

"So, a date?" Carol asked.

It had been ages since she had been out on a date. That was not for any lack of trying. Fighting a bunch of super villains might be someone's idea for a date. Carol disagreed. Not that she didn't understate the value of something like that but she wanted a night off every now and again.

"Yes, a date," Harry agreed with her. "I figure that we'd go out for a movie, some dinner…"

"Cross our fingers and hope that no villains decide to ruin the night," Carol said, with a smile.

There was a huge round of laughter with both of them.

"So, what do you think?" Harry asked, with a smile. "You could use a night off, you have been working yourself so hard. And I'm sure that you have been wanting to get away from a while."

"You're one to talk about needing a night off," Carol said. "After the trials you went through to be the Sorcerer Supreme."

"Point well taken," Harry said and he stepped towards her, closing the gap between the two of them. "So how about it?"

Carol didn't hesitate for a second. "Yes, it's a date."

Harry smiled, he had been wanting to get Carol off to the side for some time. It was just the proper opportunity never presented itself.

Carol thought that Friday night would be a night that she never would forget.

* * *

><p><strong>To Be Continued On October 18<strong>**th****, 2014. **

**So this is just a transition, a calm before the storm, before the insanity happens. Actually the next couple of chapters are along those lines. **


	10. Interactions

**Chapter Ten: Interactions.**

* * *

><p>Carol Danvers dressed in a sleek red dress that showed enough of her curves to give a hint of things to come, but it was modest enough to show that she was a woman of high standards. She wore a pair of see through stockings that clung to her sensual, but muscular legs, along with a pair of knee high boots that added to the allure of her. The woman stretched herself out by the front door and there was a smile that crossed her face when she rose up on the tips of her toes.<p>

She honestly couldn't believe her fortune sometimes and she thought that something would happen. It wouldn't be Harry's fault or her fault, but something always goes wrong.

"Hi, Carol," he said and Carol looked up, to see Harry dressed in a nice suit. It suited him well. "You look beautiful."

"Thanks, you look pretty good yourself," Carol said with a smile and he leaned in to take her arm.

"So shall we?" Harry asked.

"Of course, lead the way," Carol commented, when the two of them walked into a very exclusive club.

Carol whistled, she never thought that she would see the inside of a place like this. At least off of the clock, on the clock was another matter entirely because criminals hid out in public.

"It helps to have connections in high places," Harry said and Carol smiled. She saw many people being turned away from the front door when they walked inside.

The two of them walked inside without a hitch and without any kind of problem.

"I can see that," Carol said, and the music actually wasn't as over the top as some of it was.

"It's all on me," Harry told her, and Carol smiled, who was she to deny a free meal.

"You know, it's kind of weird," Carol commented and Harry raised his eyebrow.

"The being out on a date with me thing?" Harry joked and Carol looked at him, blinking. "I can see why that might be kind of surreal, but don't worry, I don't bite, unless you ask me extremely nicely."

"You know, I might have to take you up on that later," Carol said with a smile on her face, and she shook her head. "But the thing that's surreal is that the two of us are together and no one is trying to kill us. And…"

"You're half expecting someone to come along and ruin it, aren't you?" Harry asked her.

The two of them sat down at a table and waited for food to be delivered. The blonde shifted against him.

"It's been a while since I've done the date thing," Carol said, shaking her head. "I mean, first there's been all the training at the military, where I joined the air force. Then there's the incident with that alien artifact that took about twenty years off my life. I could have died, so that isn't exactly a recommended fountain of youth."

Harry just smiled at her. "But you looked pretty good before then."

"I did, but that's just the art of working your ass off to maintain a good body," Carol said and Harry smiled. "And quite the ass to work off if I have to say so myself."

"I wasn't going to say anything," Harry said, taking a moment to dig into his food. "That's all on you Miss Danvers."

"I guess that I walked into that one," Carol said to him and she smiled. Her costume pretty much emphasized that point. "And to find out that the artifact was Kree…."

"I thought we weren't going to talk about our work tonight," Harry said firmly.

Carol shook her head and she gave a sigh. "I know…..is it that bad that my work has become my life?"

"We do need to change that, and soon," Harry suggested to her and he smiled, taking a drink with good grace. "There are ways to cope."

"And you've somehow turned out normal despite all of the balls that you've thrown up in the air, Sorcerer Supreme, head of a major multi-national corporation, consultant to SHIELD," Carol said, ticking off numerous fingers.

"Sorcerer Supreme is a job I've been preparing for, for half of my life, so that's no big deal, the corporation pretty much runs itself because I've painstakingly chosen people who I know will take care of the major day to day stuff, and really, consultant?" Harry asked with a smile. "I think that you're confusing me with Stark. Granted, if I'm being paid for any consulting work, my check must have got lost in the mail."

Harry placed his palm underneath his chin and mused thoughtfully.

"But, then again ,I'd happily accept money to give Fury a hard time when he's out of line," Harry said.

"I really thought that you were there under an official capacity," Carol said.

There were all kinds of rumors. Sometimes it was really difficult to separate the fiction from reality.

"Fury wants me on sight as a field agent, but you know, that's happening, although if I only got paired with female agents, I might be enticed enough to think about it," Harry said with a smile on his face.

"There's no shortage of attractive female agents who want to jump you, in both SHIELD and SWORD," Carol said, before she shook her head and sighed.

Harry raised an eyebrow and smiled at her. "Would you happen to be amongst them, Miss Danvers?"

"Never mind," Carol commented with a smile.

"And you forgot part time Avenger for the record," Harry told her.

"I didn't forget, I just didn't know if that still counted," Carol said, and she shifted her arms. "You show up in more places than Wolverine sometimes."

"Hey, that guy still has a leg up on me," Harry said defensively, taking a drink.

"And it's been a long time, I haven't seen the inside of my apartment in a year, I've almost forgotten what it looked like," Carol said and she could feel Harry's hands lightly rub her shoulders. He stopped when she turned around to look at him. She frowned at him. "I didn't say to stop."

Harry smiled and continued to give her a shoulder rub. She was so tense that he thought that she needed one and he did have some magic hands. They would need to be put to some good use other than slaying demons and crazy wizards and all that shit. So, he decided to help an old friend.

"Well, tonight you're going home, and getting a fresh reminder of what it looks like," Harry said to her, and that was not a suggestion, rather it was a statement of fact.

"Who am I to deny such a request?" Carol asked and she looked into Harry's eyes.

"And I believe that I also promised you a dance," Harry told her.

"So, you did," Carol muttered and Harry lead her out on the dance floor. His hands rested against her waist and lightly touched it, pulling her onto the dance floor.

It had been a long time, and Carol returned the favor, resting her hands on Harry's hips. She tried to resist the urge to feel him up. At least in public, when they were back in the apartment, she made no promises.

Carol was surprised, pleasantly so, when Harry dipped her and nearly touched her down to the ground. He pulled her back up to her feet and the two of them went face to face with each other. They were nearly touching nose to nose.

"What?" Harry asked with a smile on her face.

Carol knew that Harry was trying to work her up into a frenzy and she cleared her throat. Two could play that game. The blonde beauty had a sultry grin appear on her face when her hands started to roam all over Harry's body.

"Two can play that game," Carol whispered, and Harry again spun her around, nearly backing her up against the wall, and the pulling her out in the middle of the dance floor.

The dance continued for some time, with both of them trying to psyche the other out. It was an interesting game of them trying to top this. Harry was ahead on points.

"So, are you ready to head on home?" Harry whispered in her ears. "I'll tuck you into bed and everything."

"Oh, I think that the night is still young," Carol said, and her fingers rested on his chest for a second. She teased him a little bit, trying to psyche him out.

She figured that he would be used to this by now, but it wasn't going to stop her from having the fun in trying.

Harry smiled and he rested his hand on the small of her back. He came inches away from traveling down towards a more private and intimate area, but he pulled out before he could reach that point.

"I think that tonight is still young, and we should make the most of it," Harry said and the two of them prepared to leave. "Don't worry about your car, I'll have someone take care of it in a minute and make sure it's safely back without a scratch."

"It's a rental anyway," Carol admitted, but a grin crept over her face never the less.

"A pretty good rental, aren't most of them…"

"Yes, but I figured that if I'm dating the best, I would have to show up in nothing less than the best," Carol said with a smoldering grin threatening to further break out on her face.

Harry wasn't going to lie, he couldn't argue with that. Then again he had a pretty high opinion of himself and not without good reason.

* * *

><p>"Don't mind the mess, like I said, it's been a while."<p>

Carol opened the door of her apartment, leading the way. She gave Harry a nice show, the dress that she wore wrapped snugly around her shapely ass. That was her best feature in her opinion. Not that the rest of her features were anything unremarkable or whatever.

"I don't mind the mess, and believe me, honey, I understand," Harry said, placing his finger on her lips and she smiled at the term of endearment.

Carol looked around. She wasn't about to deny that it wasn't damning as she thought.

She blinked when she saw it. If she couldn't confirm it with her own two eyes she wouldn't believe it. Yet it was there in living color. Her apartment, the disaster area that it was, had been cleaned nicely.

Carol smiled when she turned around.

"Well, I guess that magic does have a few interesting uses," Carol said with a smile and she really didn't recognize her house.

"I figured that I'd help you out, although I don't make a habit of using magic to clean that often, it takes some of the interpersonal effort out," Harry said.

"But the fact that you know the spells is pretty useful in a pinch," Carol said to him, and there was a wicked grin crossing her face. If she played her cards right, this would prove to be a memorable night for both her and Harry.

She just hoped that no one conspired to screw her over and cockblock her. That always could be a problem.

"Yes, they're pretty useful in a pinch," Harry told her, agreeing with her statement one hundred percent. "And I'm sure that given the circumstances, you can forgive me for taking a short cut."

Carol smiled when she saw the door to her bedroom blown out. She didn't know whether it was a hint or a sign. She would take it as both.

"You just sit there and make yourself comfortable, I'm going to slip into something more comfortable," Carol said and she slipped into her room.

Harry smiled, he could sense the lust coming off of her. This would prove to be a good night, especially considering that Carol was in desperate need of being laid.

"Harry, could you come inside for one minute?"

And she invited him into her bedroom, in who only knew what state of undress. Harry supposed that he could have looked through the door and taken a nice long look at what she had in store for him. It would kind of take the fun out of the situation, so he wasn't about ready to do that.

He entered the room and what he saw blew him completely away.

"I found an old costume of mind, it looks a bit ragged, and I had to make a few modifications to it," Carol said, and she dragged her tongue around her lips when she looked at Harry. "Tell me what you think?"

Harry smiled, it looked rather ragged all things considered, but he didn't think that was a bad thing. Far from the contrary, it was a pretty good thing. The costume had red material that stopped a little bit underneath her shapely breasts. The outline of her DD-Cup breasts was visible through the other side of the material and her nipples poked out to call to him. Her well defined abs were drool worthy, and the bottom half was almost like a thong, wrapped around her lower half. He could see a bit of moisture rise from the area around her crotch as well.

"I had to replace the boots, they were damaged," Carol said and she showed off the thigh high red stockings that she wore, along with the garter belt. She ran her fingers sensually across her muscular but sensual legs. "I think that you can agree that I have a more than serviceable replacement."

Harry whistled when he looked over how the material fit around her body. She looked extremely sexy. Then again someone with a body like hers could look sexy in anything or nothing at all.

"For sure," Harry commented for her.

"So, we didn't have a chance to have dessert, did we?" Carol asked. She ran her hands slowly over the curves of her body, feeling herself up with a smile on her face.

"Well I didn't want to spoil my appetite for later," Harry said and he walked over, placing his hands on her stocking clad legs and slowly working his fingers up.

He could see Carol's eyes fluttered over in lust. She wanted this bad, she needed this bad.

He was going to give this to her, hard, and heavy.

"You're skilled with your tongue," Carol remarked to him. "I've heard people talk about it, and I want you to…..you know what I want."

"I've had a few girls in my day, you don't have to spell it out," Harry said.

Carol raised her eyebrow at this potential mistruth. "Just a few?"

Harry smiled. "Lay back Miss Danvers, and prepare to get your mind blown in ways you never thought possible."

Carol gave a lustful sigh and propped herself up on her elbows. Her legs spread a little bit, ready for the attention that she thought that they deserved.

* * *

><p>The duties of the Sorcerer Supreme were never done and Harry figured that despite everything that was going on, he had to fit them in.<p>

He just got back from a realm where he had to deal with some hideous demons who sucked the life out of everything that they touched or even breathed on.

Harry dealt with the hideous creatures known as Dementors. These demons on the hand made those magical creatures look like an army of rabid girl scouts. Harry supposed that an army of girl scouts could be pretty dangerous in their own right, but that wasn't the point that Harry was really going for here.

His journeys throughout the realms were cataloged. From the point of view of this world, he had been only gone five minutes. He wasn't too sure about how long he was gone in the actual realm.

He was pretty sure that it was long.

There was another problem that Harry didn't foresee when he returned. It had to deal with something that was of legend in the world that he was born from. Thankfully a world that he left a long time ago, they didn't even know that he was there only long enough to curb stomp that pathetic excuse for a Dark Lord and pretty much sent him on a journey to his eternal torment.

The state that man's soul was in. Harry hoped that it was worth it. Then again, that dark Lord never planned on dying. So he was arrogant enough not to think of the consequences.

Harry showed him that the best laid plans of even the best of them often went horrifically awry. Anyone who had any experience with anything would tell you that.

He heard rumors that there were a few forces after a set of objects that could be really dangerous. And by could be, Harry meant that they were really dangerous.

They were called the unholy trinity of objects among many. On Earth, there was a legend amongst the wand wavers what they truly were. Harry doubted very much they were half as powerful as people believed that they were. At least they wouldn't make a mediocre wizard great.

They would potentially be dangerous tools in the hand of a powerful sorcerer that wouldn't really need them. Then again, bare hands would be a dangerous tool in the hands of a sufficiently powerful sorcerer.

"All of this bloodshed over a stupid little stick," Harry muttered, when he ran his hand over the holographic representative of what Strange and several other experts referred to as the Wand of Eternity.

It was also called the Elder Wand, but Harry preferred the Wand of Eternity name that much better. It just was fitting because those who quested for it often ended up with an eternity of torment.

"It must not be ultimate power, if people could lose it that easily," Harry said and he kept running through the list of former holders of the wand. The trail went completely cold after two hundred or so years back. "Or the object is cursed."

Given the potential rumored origins of the objects, Harry wouldn't be surprised. Such magical objects would be cursed, as they were passed down the lines. The person who created it might have intended it.

He knew the fairytale version of it. There might have been a kernel of truth to that tale.

"The trail ends here, but I can guess where it might have gone from there," Harry said, and he frowned.

The cloak was his by divine right, but his father gave it to Dumbledore. When Lily found that out, she flipped out something fierce. That was one of the reasons why she made an excuse to take Harry out of the country. Lily never forgot her roots in the Mundane World, unlike some Muggleborns who became enamored by magic and found out the cruel reality that there were no really good jobs out for them.

Unless they were willing to pay an arm and a leg to the goblins and forge paperwork to give them a fake bloodline, they didn't have too many options. Or they managed to become a mistress or a boy toy to an influential pureblood who didn't care about having casual sex with those of lesser blood.

"Journal entry," Harry said, recording the information for future reference. "The creatures have been destroyed. The person who let them out of their cage is after the Unholy Trinity but I'm not sure who it is. I have my ideas, all of them outlandish as the last."

All Harry would have to do was wait and see what would happen next.

* * *

><p>It was a beautiful and tranquil evening in Smallville. Jean returned after her day out with Rogue, Kitty, and Ororo, and she moved completely in with Harry.<p>

Kara turned up to join her when she was sitting out in the middle of the countryside in a field. Her eyes were closed.

'_It's okay Kara, you can sit here,' _Jean thought to her.

That caused her to jump up in surprise. The blonde felt that she had a blonde moment when she almost forgot that Jean could speak to her in her mind. Duh, that was obvious.

'_I didn't want to bother you,' _Kara thought, and she realized that Jean was in her mind. She was perfectly okay with it, or maybe because Jean's mental touch relaxed her.

"No, you're not bothering me," Jean said, opening up her eyes and she caused a blanket to extend out a little bit. Kara noticed that she was sitting on the top of it.

She sat down next to Jean, and the redhead barely smiled.

"So, how have you been holding up?" Jean asked her.

Kara sighed, loaded question might have been very loaded.

"Well, it's different, but I think that I'm getting used to it here on Earth, Lana, Chloe, and Claire have been showing me around the town today," Kara said. "We ran into a bit of a problem…."

"Meteor mutant of the week?" Jean asked and Kara blinked.

"Yeah…..every week, seriously?" Kara asked, and she was dumbstruck by these casual words from Jean.

"Yeah, it's pretty much every week," Jean said with a bright smile towards Kara and the blonde shifted her shoulders. "Actually not every week, but…"

"The guy looked like he was throwing a tantrum more than trying to kill everyone," Kara said and she cracked a grin. "Claire knocked him out with one finger to the chest."

"Well, I'm sure people might have expected a more climatic ending than that," Jean said and she folded her arms over her chest. She shifted herself back and enjoyed the sunset.

"I should really be asking how much you're holding yourself together," Kara said and Jean blinked.

"Harry helped me a lot out there," Jean said.

Kara smirked in spite herself. She knew exactly what Jean was driving at. The images from the asteroid, with Kara placing herself in Jean's place haunted her dreams over the past couple of days.

"Speaking of Harry, is he around anywhere?" Kara asked.

"Sorcerer Supreme like things, I think," Jean said and Kara nodded. "Where he has to fight a bunch of ugly demons with names that no one can pronounce without springing their tongue something fierce."

Kara blinked and she nodded. "I see."

The beautiful blonde had another question on her mind.

"If you're going to ask something, don't worry, I'll try and answer it," Jean said, she didn't want to read Kara's mind. She guessed that there might be something interesting that was going in the back of her mind.

The body language she had when they talked about Harry, Jean knew more than enough. The redhead's lips curled into a nice little grin.

"So, what's on your mind?" Jean asked. "Other than Harry."

Kara was about ready to protest, but she couldn't even deny it. She couldn't lie with a straight face at any time.

"Okay, fine, he's been on my mind, but can you blame me?" Kara asked. It didn't help that Chloe and Lana had spent the day singing his praises, without coming out and saying anything. Claire was more subtle about it.

What happened on the asteroid with Harry and Jean, that was the furthest thing away from subtle imaginable. She was introduced to the concept of wet dreams, which was only a quirk of a biology of Kryptonians who were produced through the process of child birth. Genetically created Kryptonians simply didn't have them.

That's what Lara told her anyway. The more that she knew the less that she understood.

"I can't blame you at all, Kara," Jean said, and she placed her hand on Kara's bare thigh.

The fact that the avatar of the Phoenix gave her so much attention also caused Kara's mind to go to some wild places. It was no secret that the Phoenix was worshipped on certain parts of Krypton as a larger than life deity and Kara thought about doing some own personal worshipping of her own.

She thought about it, but she didn't pull the trigger.

"You did want to ask me a question?" Jean asked Kara.

"Yeah, I did," Kara confirmed, finally finding her tongue. For some reason it felt lodged deep in the back of her throat and she couldn't spit two words out. "What's the deal between my cousin and Harry anyway?"

Jean frowned. "That's up to Claire to tell you about, you know."

Kara pouted suddenly. Jean saw that it was adorable, and she patted Kara on the head.

"Come on, that's what everyone's telling me ,there's something going on there, isn't it?" Kara asked, and Jean just smiled at her.

"You know, even if there was, you know that Harry isn't a one woman man to begin with," Jean said.

"Are you saying there is?" Kara asked, jumping on this one kernel of information, hoping to grab onto it. Even though she felt like she was grasping on thin air.

"Kara, I'm not saying that there is," Jean said patiently.

Kara wasn't going to be denied that easily. "But you're not saying there isn't, are you?"

"I'm not saying that there isn't, absolutely not," Jean said, this thing was taking an interesting turn. "I have a feeling that you should just ask Harry out."

That was rather direct and Kara had a moment of hesitation. Then she grew suddenly excited by what she could do.

"You know, I will," Kara said, she figured that she should jump on Harry….jump on the opportunity to ask Harry out while the iron was hot.

Jean could feel that there was a strong connection with Harry and Kara. There was a strong connection between the three of them. Strengthened even more by the attraction that both of them had to him but it wouldn't be there if they didn't have something common to begin with.

Kara jumped in there to fight despite a limited amount of training. She took personal responsibility for what happened even though she was fighting some extremely amazing odds out there.

Jean smiled, the two of them would get along pretty well.

* * *

><p>Lois Lane returned to Smallville, hopefully to run into Harry Evans. She did, literally run into Harry Evans.<p>

That wasn't anything new for her. That was just business as usual for Lois Lane.

"Hi, Lois, you know that we should stop meeting like this," Harry said.

"Yeah, at least it wasn't as bad as the first time I ran into you," Lois said without missing a beat. "You know, the time that I was in my car, and I almost smacked head first into you. And I'm still sorry about that by the way, and I mean that from the bottom of my heart."

Harry chuckled, Lois had been apologizing for that one for all of the time that he knew her. "You know, you weren't expecting me to pop out in front of you in some kind of magical vortex."

"True or not, I still feel bad about that," Lois said, and she shook her head. "Good to see you again, by the way, I don't know if I mentioned it in the middle of my self-loathing trip in the past. I've filed the story about the alien invasion, I hope it's good."

"It's fine," Harry said, with a smile on his face.

Since Harry ran the Planet, Lois would obviously want his approval. He did have to spring money for a proofreader for Lois's articles. She was improving, but given that she was dyslexic, that was understandable that she would make a few errors. She had such a way with words, that they drew a reader in, even if the first draft caused grammar Nazis around the world to cry misery.

"Oh, fine, just fine?" Lois asked.

"Lois, it's fine," Harry said to her with a smile.

"You know, in Harry language, that's pretty good."

Claire turned up to greet both of them outside of the gate.

"Oh, hey, Smallville, you've been keeping yourself busy after coming back from the dead," Lois said and Claire flinched. "What, too soon?"

Claire sighed, she was glad her death that could be spoken of so casually.

"It's always going to be too soon, Lois," Claire said and she had a bit of a knowing smirk on her face. "But, I'm doing well after it, if that's what you're asking."

"I see you made some new friends, and you punched one of them in the face," Lois said and Claire raised her eyebrow. "Well done, by the way, I approve."

Chloe, Lana, Gwen, Kara, and Jean all made their way out.

"This is Kara," Harry told Lois. "She's Claire's cousin."

"From the biological side of the family, right?" Lois asked and Harry nodded. "Right, I thought so."

Harry could see Gwen looking rather agitated about something and she had a portable computer in her hand, which had the thankfully muted image of J. Jonah Jameson coming up over it.

"I really need better press," Gwen said, shaking her head. "MJ and Betty are doing the best that they can, you know. But Jameson being on those jumbotrons twenty four/seven and spewing venom about Spider-Girl is a threat and a menace."

"He really is a living, breathing, walking, talking cartoon character," Chloe said, she would be more amused if her friend wasn't in distress.

"Maybe you can buy the Bugle next, and get Jameson kicked out," Lana suggested to Harry.

"Yeah, that's worth a shot," Lois said. "Of course, he could do something else like run for Mayor and really fuck things up."

Gwen shuddered and she turned to Lois. "Don't ever joke about something like that, ever."

Lois's lips curled into an apologetic gaze. She really didn't want to offend Gwen even though sometimes one could accidentally get offended by things that seemed innocent at the time.

"I didn't really want to, I'm sorry," Lois said and she honestly meant that she was sorry. She smiled when she looked over Gwen. "Are we okay with each other?"

"Yeah, we're good," Gwen said with a smile on her face. "So, what's been up with you lately?"

"Oh, the usual, trying to get a good story in all of the chaos, but from what I've heard, it's just beginning, isn't it?" Lois asked and Harry confirmed that statement with a nod of his own. "And Lucy's finally being sent somewhere where she will stay out of trouble."

"Really, did the General get fed up?" Harry asked.

"He called in a favor with Fury, and lined her up for a training course as a new SHIELD Agent," Lois said. "The General hopes that it will make Lucy learn discipline."

"And I'm sure that he's pretty much given up all hope on you, Lois," Claire said and Lois gave her girlfriend a cross look.

"You're a real laugh riot, you know that, Blur Girl?" Lois asked. Claire just smiled, her dark hair framing her face when she looked at Lois. "That's a stupid name. The Blur."

"Weren't you the one who….." Chloe said and Lois placed her hand over her cousin's mouth, to silence her.

Harry smiled and cleared his throat which caused the girls to look towards him.

"Okay, fine, it wasn't the best idea, but we can do better…..and…..I still don't know why you won't let me give you a codename," Lois said and she looked at Harry with the most obvious puppy dog eyes imaginable. "You know, I won't use anything that…well I can't use anything as bad as Paste Pot Pete."

"Or the Hypno Hustler," Lana chimed in.

"Oh, for fuck's sake, don't ever bring that one up again," Gwen said, shuddering and Harry placed his arm around her with a smile. "Sorry, bad memories prefer not to relieve them anymore ever again."

"Understood," Lana said, and she looked like she was sorry. "I'm sure Martha will have lunch ready for all of us."

"I haven't eaten anything for a few weeks, so I'm looking gone for it," Harry said.

"Weren't you…" Chloe started and then she realized something. "Oh yeah right."

"Time, space magical insanity, that's pretty much what it boils down onto," Harry said, and suddenly, Kara walked up to him.

She wanted to be subtle at first, but she thought that there was no fun in that whatsoever. So she pretty much threw subtle out the window for a more direct and less subdued approach.

"Harry," Kara said and she looked at him through her baby blue eyes.

"Just one second, I'll be with the rest of you in a minute," Harry said, and he turned to Kara. "I wanted to talk to you anyway."

"Oh, okay," Kara said, she was curious, and also interested. Also a little bit intrigued as well and she allowed Harry to lead her away in the other distance. "What's up?"

"Picking up on that Earth lingo, I like it," Harry said to Kara and the blonde placed her hand on her hip. "So, how are you holding up so far?"

"I'm…..I'm coping," Kara said.

Harry placed his hands firmly on her shoulders and made her look him in the eyes. Bright blue eyes meant deep green eyes.

"You know you shouldn't be holding everything inside, it's not fun to lose everything," Harry said and he looked into her eyes. "But you're a survivor, and you can withstand it, you know that."

"I know it," Kara agreed with a smile. "Lana, Chloe, and Claire spent half of the day showing me around, and they made sure I got a new wardrobe of clothes…"

"They better have not bought it with their own money, because I told them that I would pay for it," Harry said sternly and Kara shrugged. "I know that could have been boring to go out there and go shopping for half of the day, but at least you have a wardrobe to call your own."

Kara smiled. Chloe and Lana gave her some not so subtle suggestions about certain interesting pieces of clothing that Harry might like.

"How about we go out tomorrow night, and see a movie?" Harry asked and Kara blinked.

"You know I was about ready to ask you out," Kara said, and she was glad that Harry did. She had been beating around the bush for longer than she should.

"Great minds think alike," Harry said, pulling her in towards her. "So, it's a date?"

"Yeah, it's a date," Kara said, and she leaned in.

"The two of you better get inside, before Smallville here decides to eat your meals!" Lois called from inside the house.

Kara and Harry broke apart, the moment was lost for now.

'_Wonderful timing as always, Lois,' _Harry thought.

* * *

><p><strong>To Be Continued On October 20<strong>**th****, 2014. **

**Oh, Lois, you cockblocker. And it wasn't on purpose either. **

**Carol was one of the other girls that will get lemon time with Harry in this story. **


	11. Cementing Bonds

**Chapter Eleven: Cementing Bonds.**

* * *

><p>Kara smiled and she waited for Harry to show up to take her on her date. She wore a nice black dress that firmly wrapped around her body. There was a nice pair of boots that went along with her outfit. Lana and Chloe helped her pick out the outfit. Her hair was tied back, so her beautiful face and eyes were completely visible.<p>

She looked up and saw Harry approaching her from the driveway. She looked at him, seeing him standing there. He shined in the light, looking at her with a smile.

"You look beautiful, Kara," Harry told her.

Kara blushed and smiled. "You look pretty good yourself, Harry."

She could feel a pulsing of hormones flow through her body. She wanted that boy so bad that she could taste him. The young woman paced around in circles, but she steadied herself and took a deep calming breath.

"So, how are you doing?" Harry asked her, offering his hand to Kara, which she happily took.

"Good, I'm doing good," Kara said and she thankfully didn't embarrass herself. That was the most important thing.

She was going out with this larger than life young man, and the last thing that she wanted to do was make a fool out of herself.

"I know it can be hard starting over in a brand new world…well actually I was fairly young when I did so," Harry said to her.

"So do you remember much of it? "Kara asked.

Harry looked thoughtful. It didn't remember that much about it. He wasn't sure that he wanted to remember that much about it to be honest.

"No, I don't remember too much, but given what my mother tells me, that's a pretty good thing that I don't remember it," Harry said, giving Kara's hand a firm squeeze. The blonde ensnared her hand within Harry's.

This was going to prove to be an eventful night to be honest, Kara could feel it. She wanted to see so much of the world. She researched some places. Research was one thing, actually living through and seeing these places were another thing entirely.

"Are you ready to see one of the biggest cities in the United States?" Harry asked and Kara smiled. "Metropolis, I know that it isn't Kandor but…"

"Kandor is the past, this is my present," Kara said, and she said this firmly. There was no doubt in her mind or her voice that she was finally ready to move on with her life.

She was glad that she had the support she did. If she was all alone in this world she didn't know how she would deal with these things.

"So, you and Clara got into some real adventures between the two of you, growing up here," Kara said and then made their way into the limo.

Kara had to admit that she didn't mind the longer trip by limo as opposed to flight or teleportation. That would give her and Harry plenty of opportunities to talk.

"You could say that," Harry said, a dry chuckle escaping from his throat. Adventure put things mildly. He would say that it would be a fight for their life.

"And you helped make sure she stayed out of trouble," Kara said, and she wrapped her arms around Harry. Daringly, her lips met his cheek, and she could feel the pleasure tingle in her mouth. "Thank you for that, by the way."

"That wasn't a problem at all, you know," Harry told her, and he ran his fingers through her hair.

Kara calmed herself down. She wanted to ask Harry the same question that she had been getting the run around by.

"So, you two are pretty close," Kara said, deciding to subtly go in for this one.

She hoped that she would be subtle enough. Harry seemed like the type of person that would see through any deception.

"After all we've been through, I hope so, I helped her train in her powers, and the same offer extends to you," Harry told her.

"I bet your training is pretty hands on," Kara said, before she could really help herself. "I mean, you just don't sit there, and spit out a bunch of theory. You demonstrate the practical aspects of what really works and all that."

"That's one way to put it," Harry said, pleased that it was all coming out clearly to Kara now. The young blonde's grip on his hand didn't slack. "It will be a couple of hours before we reach the city. I hope you don't mind."

"No problem, gets me some time to get to know you," Kara said eagerly. She decided to breach a subject that was on the tip of her tongue for a long time. "Sorcery was one of the forbidden arts on Krypton. It wasn't anything the Science Council could explain. So they decided to ignore it."

Kara didn't mind it. She found it extremely interesting. Just like she found Harry extremely interesting.

"Well, we don't want to rely on magic, or our powers in general too much, because there will be situations where you can't use them for whatever reason," Harry said, and he waved his hand. A bouquet of beautiful flowers appeared in his hands. "But they do have their advantages to leave people in shock and awe."

Kara looked at the red roses that he gave her and she smiled. She had seen nothing like that on Krypton.

"Yes, beautiful," Kara whispered, and she looked at them with a smile. "You'd really help me train in my powers, wouldn't you?"

"If you want to," Harry said.

"Yeah, I would," Kara said, excitement filling through her eyes. Any excuse for her to spend any more up close and personal time with Harry was wanted, badly.

"I'm going to take you up on that offer then," Harry said with a smile, and he grabbed her hand tightly.

Kara latched onto him. For the rest of the Limo ride, Harry answered any questions that Kara had about Earth. He was surprised to see her education was better than expected, but given how long she was in the ship, it was slightly out of date.

* * *

><p>"This is not getting screwed up, not her first date out on Earth," Claire said, when she hovered high above the sky in Metropolis.<p>

She was determined to make sure that her cousin had a good time. And she was determined to make sure it happened by any mean's necessary.

"Especially when it's with Harry, and you know how notoriously bad his luck is with these things," Jean commented.

Claire frowned. Jean brought up a good point, the very reason why she was running this level of interference.

"Exactly."

Claire knew that nine times out of ten, every time Harry went out on a date, there was a pretty good chance that there would be some dangerous enemy that would try and pick a fight with him. Or just some criminal who just happened to rob or destroy the place where he and his date went to just for shits and giggles.

The fact was that after his date with Carol went off without a hitch, that caused Claire to get a bit nervous about how this date with Kara was going to go. Her cousin deserved nothing less, but the very best. Claire wasn't going to deny that fact. Especially considering the connection that she forged with Harry in such a short time.

Jean could see the thoughts of determination going off of Claire's mind. The attractive dark haired Kryptonian looked out over the city of Metropolis, the city that she tried to protect when she wasn't dealing with problems in Smallville.

"You know, between the two of us, we're going to make sure that their night isn't going to get ruined," Jean said. She smiled and decided to add something, unable to resist adding it. "And it will end with a bang."

Claire smiled, the obvious innuendo was really obvious. She combed the city. Just on cue, the limo arrived that contained Harry and Kara. Both of them were having a good time, just joking and being merry. If Claire had her way, it would stay that way. There was no question in her mind about that one.

"So far no signs of trouble," Claire commented.

Perhaps this scouting trip would be one that would be a waste of time.

Claire could see a group of shady looking young men. A quick look at them indicated that they were armed and about ready to break into the bank that was across the street from the night club that Kara and Harry were about to have their date on.

'_Oh no you don't,' _Claire said. She was determined to make sure that her cousin's first date on Earth was not ruined.

Jean was already on the ball. She closed her eyes.

'_Turn back around, get into the car, and drive home, and also call the police to confess to any crimes you might have done, and show them where any stashes of stolen goods are located,' _Jean said.

Claire blinked, she could see the thugs turning around and making their way to the side exit of the building.

"I know, that's a cheap way out, but for the simple minded, it's better than a fight that leads to loads of property damage," Jean said, with a smile on her face. She dropped her arms down against her waist.

"Yes, I guess that's the case, isn't it?" Claire asked her. She could have almost laughed.

Property rates in Metropolis were already sky rocketing insurance wise. It was enough to make a grown man cry.

"Intergang at twelve o'clock," Claire said, and she could see the armored thugs make their way to another facility.

The dark haired girl zipped to the other side of them. She took their weapons before they could even react.

Jean slammed them hard into the wall. She knocked them out and made them go to sleep.

"This was too easy," Claire commented, when she put her hands on her hips. Jean's green eyes met Claire's bright and vibrant baby blue eyes. "Yes, I know, don't jinx it."

"Yes, please don't," Jean agreed with her. She really did hope that Claire wouldn't do that.

The sounds of something else approaching prepared to ruin this evening. Several toy helicopters flew through the air.

"Why is it that everyone has to be committing a crime tonight?" Claire asked, and she disabled the toy helicopters whilst Jean scanned for the source.

"I don't know, there's just some kind of dumb luck, I guess," Jean said, and she used her telekinesis to crush a tank that rolled into the city.

The people were about to scream. Claire picked up the tank and hurled it halfway across the city. Jean encased it in a telekinetic shield and caused it to explode.

"Toyman should be around here close," Claire said and she shuddered.

"He's the poster child of keeping your children locked up, isn't he?" Jean asked.

"You better not mention anything about children too loudly around him, he'll get excited," Claire said and she paused. "You're not going to rewire his mind to make him behave are you?"

"Do you have a problem with that?" Jean asked her.

The Kryptonian female shook her head. So far there were no more toys, at least none on the ground. "On principle I should, but in reality, I don't."

Harry and Kara had not been drawn off of their date. That was the best thing about tonight so far.

'_So, any luck?' _Jean asked.

'_I'm perched on the rooftop, and no, there's nothing, but I'll keep watching,' _Gwen thought over the communication link. The blonde shifted her hands across either side of her body and a deep frown passed over her lips.

'_Thank you, I appreciate all of the help,' _Jean thought.

'_Hey, after all we've been through, that's the least I can do,' _Gwen said. _'Oh no, Mysterio, I'll talk to you later.'_

Spider-Girl swung down and went off to face Mysterio. He always made a ruckus which didn't bode well for their plans.

"We might need to call in a bit more backup than I thought," Claire said and Jean did a wide sweep across the city.

She thought at first to lock onto any thoughts of criminal activity. The problem there was locking onto the thoughts and establishing if the intent was serious. Even law abiding citizens briefly considered a felonious action every now and again. They just didn't follow through with it.

* * *

><p>Kara enjoyed sitting down and being a teenager for once in her life. She seemed to be given a wide birth by most on Krypton when she didn't seem to agree with a lot of the philosophies of the Council. She always was too independent for her good like her mother was. The blonde folded her arms over her chest and reclined back, propping her feet up.<p>

"So, are you enjoying this?" Harry asked Kara.

"A lot," Kara said, and she smiled. She could have sworn that she heard something outside.

It was just the wind or maybe a figment of her own imagination. Kara decided to leave her curiosity out of it tonight.

"I know it's a hot spot and it sometimes attracts the wrong kind of trouble," Harry offered to her. "But I think that you can handle anyone in there."

"I don't only think that I can, but I know that I will," Kara said and the obvious confidence brimmed through her eyes. "And I believed that you promised me a dance."

"I think that I did, is this your first time?" Harry asked her.

"Yeah, my mother tried to teach me, but we never got too far," Kara said and she barely held back a round of laughter. She wrapped her arms around Harry's neck and looked into his eyes. "I guess that I'm just far more graceful in the air, than I am on the ground."

There was a loud footstep outside. Harry looked out of his corner and he could have sworn that he saw something outside of the window.

Upon closer inspection, he saw absolutely nothing. He frowned and Kara tugged on his hand.

"That's one thing that we both have in common," Harry said, he had been hearing strange things all evening.

He decided to focus on his date and not worry about anything to deal with until it was right up in his face. Could his good luck have extended to two straight dates? Harry wouldn't admit that he was having good luck, because that was just asking for all kinds of trouble.

* * *

><p>"Get off me!"<p>

Spider-Girl hung onto Rhino's horn and she tried to fling him off. She bounced off of the wall and he charged forward.

"Oh no, no no, no, not through there!" Spider-Girl yelled and he was about ready to charge through the front entrance of the club where Harry and Kara were having their date.

Claire jumped on in and used one finger to flick Rhino out of the way. He slammed hard into the back of a police van and was knocked out.

* * *

><p>Kara felt Harry's arms wrap tightly around her and she was content in his grip. She figured that there was no reason why she should be anything but content.<p>

"Not bad for your first dance, is it?" Harry asked her.

Kara shook her head. "No, it's just…..well I'm following your lead and seeing where it takes me. I figure that you're the one with a lot of experience."

Harry smiled at her and Kara shook her head. She straightened up, at least for a moment, before he dipped her down. His hand placed on either thigh and he pulled her back up.

"You know what I mean," Kara whispered to him and Harry smiled, holding her up straight in front of him.

"Yes, Kara, I know what you mean," Harry said and he pulled her in close to them. They might as well have been touching. "It takes a light of practice to refine a person's technique."

Kara felt Harry's hands roam over her body. She was pretty sure that he had plenty of practice to refine that technique.

"So, how about a drink?" Harry asked her.

Kara didn't think that she would get a buzz off of anything here due to her Kryptonian stamina. The blonde's lips curled into a knowing smile and she realized that it would be fun enough for her to try.

The two of them sat down next to each other.

"Some of this stuff is very strong, and I know that it's your first time," Harry told her.

"I'm game for it," Kara said and the determination burning through her eyes was such that they knew that she wasn't about to back down from a challenge.

* * *

><p>"Super villain convention in town that we're not aware of, maybe?" Spider-Girl asked when she stood over the fallen bodies of the Wrecking Crew.<p>

"Pretty much," Jean said, and she dragged the Juggernaut over. His mind had been completely and totally shut down. He was made to believe that he was a three year old little girl on his way to a tea party. "At least that's what I'll assume right now."

"I think that's everyone," Claire commented, and she might have been a little rough on some of these criminals.

It was self-defense, she could assure everyone that.

A portal opened and Claire groaned. That couldn't be good. Random magical portals opening up in the middle of nowhere were rarely good.

* * *

><p>Kara smiled, the night was winding down and she was having a pretty good time. In fact her time was better than good, she was having an excellent time.<p>

"Don't worry about the limo, I'll have it driven back to the hotel," Harry said, leading her outside.

Harry didn't turn around, for if he did, he would have seen a hideous creature being knocked back through the portal by Claire with a huge roundhouse punch.

"Do you have a feeling that something more has been going on tonight than we've realized?" Kara asked.

"No, not really," Harry said, and he wrapped his arm around her waist. "You know, there's hardly anyone around tonight, it might be the proper time for me to test your flight speed. Race you around Metropolis and back."

Kara didn't even ask whether he could fly. That was just one of the things that she assumed right off the bat to be true.

"Are you ready?" Harry asked her and Kara responded with a shit eating grin.

"Always," Kara said and she kicked up in the air. "One question, what happens if I catch you?"

Harry turned towards her when both of them looked at each other in midair. "I'm pretty sure that you'll figure out something creative. Actually I know that you will for sure."

* * *

><p>Harry could tell that Kara's abilities were moving along at a steady rate. She would be improving even more the longer that she had a chance to train for them. Her flight abilities needed a little more work, but Harry thought that they would work on that sooner or later.<p>

"Are you keeping up?" Harry asked, looking over his shoulder towards her.

"Yeah, I'm keeping up," Kara said and she zoomed towards him at the speed of light. They made a really sharp turn.

She nearly crashed. Much to her dismay that would have caused more problems than it would have helped. There was something that helped slow her flight.

"Remember, to use all of your senses and your surroundings," Harry said when he looked over his shoulder and made sure that Kara straightened up and flew right.

The blonde followed him, determined to fly a little bit better this time. She got it and she closed in on Harry.

"We've got one more trip around the city before I can clock your flight speed," Harry said, looking over his shoulder towards her. "Are you ready?"

Kara nearly overtook Harry. She did say nearly because it was obvious that he slowed down for her sake. When it was obvious that she was on his ass, he sped up a little bit. Kara drew in a deep breath.

She remained mindful of surroundings and when she was able to absorb them all around her, she sped up as well. She followed Harry as close as she could go behind him. Kara was nearly up by Harry. A little more and she would have approached him.

Harry pulled ahead and Kara groaned.

They two of them were like a pair of multi-colored blurs over the city of Metropolis. It seemed like Kara pulled ahead, and then Harry pulled ahead of her.

"Reaching the final leg of the journey!" Harry called over his shoulder. He made sure that Kara was still with him.

Kara sped up her flight towards him. The blonde closed in on him. She was closer to him than ever before. She thought that she could grab him if she tried. Something told her though that there were spells against that.

The two of them landed down firmly on a building. Both of them felt themselves drop down. Kara leaned against a Globe that said "Daily Planet" on it. She slowly turned towards Harry with a smile on her face.

"So how did I do?" Kara asked her.

Harry approached her and held out his hand with a smile. "You're just a shade underneath faster than a speeding bullet. Keep that up, and you'll be going too fast for your own good. But, your flight was a little jerky on turns. So we might want to work on that next time."

"Yeah, I noticed that," Kara said and she gave a very slight cringe.

The two of them were on the top of the city, overlooking everything. They approached each other. Kara closed the gap that widened. Her arms wrapped around Harry and she looked into his eyes.

"What's on your mind?" Harry asked her. He realized that she lost her shoes in mid-flight. It could have been far worse or far better depending on how you looked at things. His hands reached on the small of her back.

"Oh, I'm just thinking about what we got interrupted in doing the other day," Kara said.

It was a beautiful night, the type of night where it was extremely easy to get lost in the moment. Kara closed the gap around Harry. Her lips moistened and the thought of what she could experience with Harry grew in her mind. She stepped in closer towards him.

"I don't recall, but I think that it went something like this," Harry said, enclosing his arms around her.

Kara experienced a kiss that blew her mind. It was a thousand times better than anything she ever imagined and her imagination could run completely wild.

Harry rested his hand on her back and slowly worked his way down. He backed her into the Globe.

"Harry, I need you, please," Kara said, as she prepared for her mate to give her the pleasure that she knew that she desired.

* * *

><p>Jean watched the last couple of moments of what happened. She received some strong exotic thoughts from halfway across the city. It was a wonder that Kara didn't put Harry through the top of the building, or vice versa.<p>

It was his building regardless and Jean wouldn't have blamed him if he did. She stepped in, closing the gap and looked around. Claire and Gwen did any last minute round up while she took a close look at the immediate area between Harry and Kara.

So far it was so good, although there were a couple of close shaves. There were more than too many close shaves.

She could see Kara nestled up against Harry, her fingers brushing against his abs. She absent mindedly traced circles around the area of his midsection.

'_Thank you,' _Harry thought to her and Jean blinked.

She should have known that Harry would have put two and two together. Jean weighed her options and considered carefully what her next move would be.

* * *

><p>A loud belch prompted arrival of a loud motorcycle showing up out of the blue. The bar that it showed up in front of might have been considered a dive by the most obvious sense of the world. A questionable looking woman flew out of the window and landed with a crash at the man's feet.<p>

"A pretty classy joint you got here, hope nothing bad happens to it."

The large boots swung off of the bike and the man was large, over eight feet tall. He wore tight leather pants, a wife beater top, and a leather jacket. He had pale skin and wore a large greasy mullet, along with a mustache. He made sure his bike was secure.

He loved his bike. Anyone who fucked with his hog, they would be a dead man. They better not fuck with it, unless they got sick and tired of breathing. Then they might have some trouble.

He walked into the bar and his latest client was waiting for him in the back room.

His name was Lobo, he was the one and only Main Man. And he was the most feared bounty hunter in the entire universe.

"Man, I could go for the hard stuff," Lobo growled, and he stepped towards the bar. He sat down. "Hey bartender, hook me up."

"Right away, the Emperor wants to ensure that you have been taken care of before he offers you this job," the man said to Lobo.

"Emperor, huh, well that sounds like a pretty classy guy, he does," Lobo said and he passed some heavy gas. "Man, I tell you though, whatever he's paying me, I hope that it's worth it. Not that I mind coming to a high class joint like this."

He saw a woman with three eyes and four breasts give him the eye. She had tentacles for hair as well.

"I love this place," Lobo said, and he took the drink. He dumped it down his throat with one gulp. "That's the shit right there."

Lobo slammed the tankard down on the table.

A purple man with a blue Mohawk stepped out and stared Lobo down.

"Are you Lobo?" the Mohawked man asked.

"Who wants to know?" Lobo asked, and he belched in the man's face.

"The Emperor wants to speak to you about the job, he's holding court in the back room."

"Oh, I guess I better see what this is all about then, shouldn't I?" Lobo asked and he got to his feet.

The doors of the bar swung open. Lobo walked to the backroom. The smells coming from the bathroom would have nauseated most people.

'_Reminds me of my grandmother's house,' _Lobo said and he decided to take a cigar on the wall and light it up.

"So, you're the guy who had me come half way to the middle of this bar, for what?" Lobo asked and the man in the shadows stared Lobo down. "Hey, you called me out here for a job, didn't you?"

"Yes, I did," the man in the shadows stated, his voice was calm. There was a hint of madness dancing between his words, to the point where one would wonder if he might lose his mind. "It's very simple what I want for you. I wish for you to capture the vessel for the Phoenix Force. I wish to harness her power for the use of the Shi'Ar empire."

"Well, that's a big job," Lobo said, and the man slammed a case down on the table. It was heavy and Lobo opened it up, to reveal the glowing black jewels inside. "And now, you've got my attention."

The Emperor smiled, he always had the attention of people like Lobo. He knew how to speak their language.

**To Be Continued on October 23****rd****, 2014. **

* * *

><p><strong>Well it just seemed like everything went wrong except for Harry and Kara's date.<strong>

**And hide everyone, it's Lobo! **


	12. Bounty of the Phoenix Part One

**Chapter Twelve: The Bounty of the Phoenix Part One.**

* * *

><p>Lobo's interest was piqued. The legend of the Phoenix had reached every single corner of the universe. While Lobo wasn't the most well-read individual, he heard enough tales. The Phoenix had the power to wipe out entire star systems with a blink of her eye. Lobo thought that he had a pretty good chance at surviving a few rounds with her after all of the shit that he had been through.<p>

The fact that there was plenty of gold in front of him caused the man to be tantalized and he looked at it. The jewels added to the gold were am obscene amount and the Main Man thought that he could retire to some asteroid with all of the whores that he could afford.

That might get boring after a couple of days though. The thought that he could though excited Lobo like you never would believe.

"So, let me get this straight," Lobo said with a huge grunt and he crossed his arms over his chest. "You want me to hunt down this bird, and…."

"Bring her to me alive, I don't want her dead," the man in the shadows said.

Lobo was caught off guard by that order. He shook his head.

"Right, well, I can't make any promises, but for what you're paying me, I can make an exception," Lobo said, analyzing the jewels that were laid out on the table with a critical eye and a wide smile.

The Main Man was going to cash in and it was going to be the big time. He drummed his large finger over the table.

"Okay, let me ask you one thing, just who are you?" Lobo asked him.

A crazed individual with wild hair looked out of the shadows towards Lobo. His large mohawked bodyguard kept his eyes on Logo.

"I'm the Emperor of the Shi'Ar empire," the man said, and he didn't extend his hand. He didn't want to foul up his hand by touching a dirty Czarnian. "You may call me D'Ken."

Lobo looked at the man. He was the type of man that you wouldn't want to meet in a dark alley. He was crazy enough to stab you in the chest and laugh about it later. The Main Man wondered what he had to deal with.

"Yes, well, I've heard of you, and…..it's an honor to work for someone who is willing to pay so much," Lobo said and he grinned.

"That's just a downpayment," D'Ken said to him. Lobo's interest was piqued due to the fact that there was more. "Get the job done, you'll get the rest of it."

"Oh, this is a hell of a downpayment, and all I have to do is frag some cosmic bird and bring her back to you alive," Lobo said.

"The Phoenix will allow me to reshape the universe into my own image," D'Ken said. "Do it well and I'll make sure to reward you handsomely with a part of it."

Lobo wondered if he could wrangle that private asteroid with his own troupe of whores out of it. It was always possible, he supposed. The Main Man allowed some natural gas back into the environment with a huge belch.

"It's been an honor doing business with you, and I'll have her back," Lobo said. "Any idea where I can find her?"

"She's been sighted in the Null Zone last, why don't you start there?" D'Ken suggested.

"The Null Zone…..oh…..whoa," Lobo said suddenly and he held his hands back.

"I don't think that there will be a problem with the Null Zone, is there?" D'Ken asked.

"No, some of my wildest parties happened there," Lobo said, and he walked out. "You can count on me, your majesty."

D'Ken nodded, he counted on this crude and crass man to track down the Phoenix. The moment that he was able to do so, the man would be vaporized. It would allow him and the Shi'ar to capture the object of their obsession. Then they would be able to conquer their enemies and bring them to their knees where they belonged.

"My liege, do you think that it is wise to trust a wildcard like Lobo?" one of his aides asked.

"I don't trust him completely," D'Ken said and he laughed in amusement.

It was times like this where they gave their Emperor a wide path and just allowed him to have one of his episodes. His time in exile before he was put back on the throne did not do wonders for his sanity. He was not completely sane to begin with, so there was that.

* * *

><p>"Okay, onwards to the null zone," Lobo said.<p>

The Last Czarian was on his bike and ready to track the path of the Phoenix Force. He had a couple of gadgets but he didn't use them too often. When he worked, he let his fists to do the talking against the face of his enemies. He battered anyone who got in his way because that was how the Main Man rolled when he was in business.

He could sense that there was a different type of energy coming in from the Null Zone.

"Whoa, what the fuck," Lobo growled.

He knew for a fact that there was an asteroid there. There were only a few fragments floating in the vastness of space.

"Well, someone here had a wild party," Lobo said, and one of the fragments burned. He could feel the type of energy that sent tingles down his spine.

He thought that if the Phoenix was still in the Null Zone, she would have been right up his ass and not in the good way either. The Main Man cracked his knuckles and noticed something else.

The void warp that claimed all of those ships were gone which meant someone sealed it. People tried to seal it for years. Hell Lobo once drove in it for a dare and the shit that was inside was not to be repeated in the presence of polite company. Not that Lobo would know anything about being around polite company.

"Okay, let's see what the fuck we're dealing with now," Lobo said, snapping his fingers.

He knew where he was going; at least he hoped that he did. It led him to the Milky Way galaxy. He didn't go there too often unless he had a job. There were a bunch of prudes around there.

* * *

><p>A beautiful penthouse was a nice vantage point for a great view of Metropolis. Kara wrapped herself in a nice silk bathrobe when she looked outside the window in the midst of Metropolis. The blonde held her hand against the window. She basked in the moment that was and she just had to smile.<p>

"So, how was it?"

Kara turned around and saw Jean standing there next to her. She wrapped herself in nothing but a tight white hair. The blonde couldn't keep her eyes off of the redhead. The power she gave caused Kara to feel a rush between her legs. She stepped towards her and smiled widely.

"It was amazing," Kara said to Jean. Jean gave her a knowing smile. "But I would expect nothing less."

Jean laughed in amusement. That was really true; with Harry you would expect absolutely nothing less. Green eyes locked with amazing and brilliant blue eyes. The redhead lifted her hand and placed it on Kara's shoulder.

"Welcome to the family," Jean said to Kara.

"It was a longer time coming for you, wasn't it?" Kara asked.

"It was, too long, but it seemed like everything held us back," Jean said, with a great deal of mirth etched in her voice. She stepped closer to Kara and whispered in her ear. "But now we've bonded and it allowed us to reach higher heights."

"It felt like a part of me was always missing," Kara admitted, and she shifted her stance when she looked at Jean. "You know what I mean?"

"I know exactly what you mean," Jean said. "And Harry put you through the paces and you wanted to come back for more, didn't you?"

"Always, he knew what I wanted," Kara said, she waited for Harry to return.

She intended to jump him the moment that he returned from what he was doing. It was supposed to be a quick errand. Harry was stirring her up in her mind and Kara folded her arms. Frustration brimmed through her mind.

"He knew what you wanted, and he was there to scratch every single itch that you had, wasn't he?" Jean asked Kara.

"Yes, he was," Kara said, her eyes locked onto the redhead.

Her eyes traveled over the body of the redhead and she slowly licked her lips. There was a similar glow that emitted from her body.

"So, Harry has the attention of a lot of women," Kara commented, bringing herself back on pont. In a roundabout way at least but she wanted to know something.

"You don't have any problem with that, do you?" Jean asked.

"That shows his strength and is a testament to how good he is if he is able to satisfy all of them," Kara said in her most firm voice. She spoke with conviction and with pride at her mate's prowess.

Kara thought that there would be some women who would have problems with that. It was just something where a lot of people didn't like to share the wealth even if the wealth was something that deserved to spread. There were selfish cows that didn't deserve her Harry's attention.

"He's that great, he's better than great," Jean said. "You saw what the two of us did."

"Yeah," Kara agreed, her body heating up from the memory. She realized that the only thing that held up Jean's towel over her body might have been her telekinesis. "That was hot."

"And now everything's clearer since you bonded with him, isn't it?" Jean asked her, a mischievous grin appearing on her face.

"Yes," Kara agreed, nodding her head up and down.

Jean placed her hand underneath her chin. The two of them shared a moment where their inhibitions very nearly became untangled and grew even wild.

The door swung open and it brought them back to reality, at least somewhat. Harry appeared on the other end of the door, and he grinned deeply when he showed up.

"I really hope that you weren't going to start the party without me, were you?" Harry asked.

Jean and Kara smiled. It was Kara who made the first move.

"I see that you repaired those clothes that I took my eyes to earlier," Kara said, advancing on him. Her hands touched Harry's abs when she ran over his body. "I'll be a bit gentler about undressing you this time, I promise."

"Do you swear?" Harry asked her and Jean smiled.

"You got me worked up all night," Jean said, and she wrapped her arms around Harry from behind, while Kara moved in from the front.

* * *

><p>Jean and Kara rested on either side of Harry's chest after they got put through the paces. He wrapped his arms around both of the girls. They snuggled on either side of Harry.<p>

"So, where were you before you came back?" Jean asked.

"Making sure we're ready if the Kree decides to come back," Harry said.

Kara frowned, and she asked the obvious question. "Are we?"

Harry mulled that one over in the back of his head for a little bit and decided that honesty was in fact the best policy. "We're getting there, I think."

He knew that SWORD worked around the clock to strengthen the defenses around Earth and he had no shortage of the action as well. All they would have to do is do the best that they could.

"If they came back after last time, they might not be as smart or evolved as they think that they are," Jean said.

Kara snorted. "It's obvious that they aren't."

The fact was that the sun was almost about ready to come up. The three of them relaxed here. There was plenty of time before breakfast to have some fun, especially when one factored in the time dilation spells.

"I'm hungry," Kara whined, when she rolled over.

"Too early for breakfast," Jean said, and Kara glanced at her. "But I think that Harry has something that can tide us over in the meantime."

Both of them decided to move their way over and continue where they left off after a short break. Harry wasn't going to argue with this, especially with what they were doing for him.

* * *

><p>The excitement of the past night caused Kara to be in a pretty good mood this morning. If nothing else, a lot of the tension that she had waking up from a long nap was gone and she was ready for action on that afternoon.<p>

She decided to catch her cousin for lunch in Metropolis. Harry was taking a trip elsewhere, but he should be back to meet all of them for dinner. Jean was elsewhere, she may be hanging out with friends. That's what Kara thought that she heard from the woman, and who was she to deny a thought like that?

"You're in a pretty good mood today, aren't you?"

Kara paused and she saw Lois exiting the Daily Planet.

"Yeah, Lois, I'm in a great mood," Kara said, bouncing up and down.

Lois watched the extra energy that Kara had with a smile on her face. "Yeah, I can tell."

Kara folded her arms underneath her chest. She wore a nice white shirt that fit snugly around her breasts, and a nice pair of jeans as well. It was not the worst clothes possible, but far more casual. She could see Lois's eyes following her with amusement.

"You have that glow to you, I figured that was coming," Lois said with a smile.

"Yeah, did Claire ever have that glow?" Kara asked.

She was persistent trying to get the full extent of the relationship between Claire and Harry. She was pretty much convinced that there was something going on there. She just couldn't hash out exactly what it was.

"I'd like to talk to you, but I've got a very important story to file in a little bit," Lois told her, evasively stepping around Kara. Kara frowned and bit down on her lip so hard that it hurt. The brunette reporter stared at Kara. "Look, she'll be down for a little bit…..she got sidetracked with something."

Lois thought that the bumbling act was really adorable. Around Harry though, there were times in the past where it wasn't too much of an act. She did grow out of the act through.

Kara pushed the designer pair of sunglasses back onto her face. Metropolis was a far cry from what happened during the evening. She thought that last night was magic. It was a shock to read about all of the crimes that took place last night. Her and Harry must have been so wrapped up into each other that she missed everything.

Kara heard the approaching of footsteps, and Claire pushed the door open. Her dark hair was clipped back and she wore a fairly conservative female business suit. There was little that you could do to hide that body she had. Kara had to admit that Claire did a pretty good job at doing that all things considered.

"I'm here, sorry that I'm late."

"No problem, you must have written about a lot of amazing things at the Planet," Kara said. She didn't see herself being a newspaper reporter. Television, sure she could see that. Television, she could really see that.

Newspaper reporter on the other hand, she couldn't see that much.

"Yeah, a lot of amazing things," Claire admitted, meeting the glowing smile that her cousin gave her. It was an alluring thing to say the very least and Claire wished to keep her eyes firmly placed on Kara's. "But, you've got me free for the next hour."

"I'm going to take it, I missed so much of your life," Kara said and she shook her head.

"You're in a pretty good mood, aren't you?" Claire asked.

She noticed that her cousin was positively glowing and she knew the reasons why a mile away. Kara rocked herself back and forth on the heels of her shoes and smiled.

"Harry showed me a pretty good time last night," Kara said, reaching in and taking Claire by the hand. "He showed me a very good time. It's a night that I'll ever forget."

The innuendo of that statement was kind of obvious to Claire. You would have to be blind not to see what she said. Claire was willing to let this one go, especially with how positive she felt this morning. This proved to be an amazing day.

"I'm very happy for you," Claire said.

Kara was about ready to grill Claire on what kind of relationship she and Harry had. She never got a chance to do so.

'_And now the criminals are conspiring against me,' _Kara thought, amusement flittering through her eyes.

The large doors busted open and smoke billowed out of them. The blonde shifted her legs together and frowned, pursing her lips. Like a speeding gunshot she cracked in the air.

The doors swung open, to reveal a group of heavily armored goons. Kara's eyebrow corked.

"It would have to be Intergang, about the fourth or fifth version of them," Claire said, making sure Kara didn't jump into the fray.

With an alien invasion, it was only apparent that they would jump out of the woodwork and get their hands on whatever alien goodies dropped from the sky. Kara and Claire locked eyes with each other momentarily, and made a solemn promise to do what they could to take them down.

"They have one of those Kree cannons," Kara said, and Claire groaned.

"That was what I was afraid of," Claire said, and she could see the components underneath it.

"You can disable the power cell hooked underneath the trigger," Kara commented to her.

"Are you sure?" Claire asked her.

Kara nodded in response. "I'm positive that I'm sure."

With a statement like that, Claire wasn't about ready to deny her cousin's knowledge of it. Kara was confident and Claire was as well.

Intergang was taken off guard when Claire blasted in at a speeding bullet. She ripped the cannon out from underneath his hand and disabled it.

It crackled, and soon enough, the armor that Intergang put together was not enough. Two blurs flew into them, making quick work.

The MCU arrived to see the battered and beaten Intergang down on the ground. Their ribs cracked from the impact and blood pouring from their mouth.

"So we were about to have lunch, weren't we?" Kara asked, almost as if they didn't beat up a group of thugs who tried to steal alien technology for their own nefarious purposes.

"Yes, we were," Claire agreed, she smiled when they moved off like nothing happened.

* * *

><p>"Nothing really big time, which doesn't mean much," Harry said at lunch.<p>

Gwen Stacy sat across from him with a smile on her face. "But you and I both know better than anyone else that this is the calm before the storm. How have you been coming along with the three of them?"

"Slow, but surely," Harry admitted to her. "The problem was after the chaos of that world coming apart; a lot of Dumbledore's property was sold off on the black market. Some if it was stolen and who knows how many sets of hands that cloak passed through. The joke might be on them though."

"How so?" Gwen asked, but then she stopped and realized where he was going with this one. "Oh yeah, that's right, cursed. I almost forgot."

"Right in one," Harry told her.

Gwen whistled deeply. A cursed set of items would be obvious. Powerfully magical items like that always had some kind of catch. It backfired against those who the artifacts didn't deem worthy. The people who created them way back when didn't appear to be idiots. It was extremely interesting that no ancient magical artifacts popped up over the past hundred years or so.

He pointed towards the scroll that he unearthed. He hoped that it would point him towards what the true nature of the Unholy Trinity was.

"Those who are unworthy to hold the items will experience a fate that is much worse than any death," Gwen said, and she shivered. "They really don't fuck around at all, do they?"

"Absolutely not," Harry agreed, and he took the theft of the cloak very personally. He leaned back and he sighed immensely.

He still wondered what his father thought about giving a priceless family heirloom to the likes of Albus Dumbledore. He wasn't worthy to hold such an item at all, as far as Harry was concerned.

"So, I heard that you have a new apprentice," Gwen said.

Harry nodded in affirmation. "I do."

"How is she coming along?" Gwen asked.

Harry arched an eyebrow when he looked at Gwen. "How on Earth did you figure out it was a she?"

"It's always a she with you Harry, I know you too well," Gwen said, finishing off her lunch. She could go for dessert in a little bit. "Seriously though, you're going to be around that post for a long time given your longevity."

"You never know," Harry said, with a serious glint dancing in his eyes. "I don't intend to die any time soon."

"None of us do," Gwen said, draining the rest of their milkshake. Harry's piercing gaze locked onto her bright blue eyes and Gwen thought about what she said twice. "Sorry, I'll let you finish."

"Thank you," Harry said in a gracious voice and he decided to help himself to the rest of their milkshake. "The problem is, it never hurts to have a few extra hands on deck."

"You want delegate some of those enemies to other people, don't you?" Gwen asked Harry and Harry smiled.

"You better believe it, but I don't want to just put that responsibility on anyone," Harry said. "She's up for the task though, once she gets fine-tuned a little bit. There's a lot that we have to work through but if the potential is there I can bring it out."

Gwen smiled. That was the good thing about Harry. He had his ways of getting the potential out of the best of them. The blonde shifted herself on her chair and folded her arms across one another.

"So, I'll help the best that I can with this trinity, but I don't know how far I'll be able to get," Gwen said.

"Believe me, if there's any hint, even an obscure Internet article, I need to follow any lead," Harry said. "There are people out there that are searching for the Unholy Trinity."

There were people out there that were chasing that ghost for many years. Regardless of whether or not they did what the legends said they did was irrelevant to Harry. The fact that people would move heaven and Earth in an attempt to get their hands on these artifacts told him all that he needed to do.

"Don' t worry, I live to serve," Gwen said, flashing a nice little smile on her face. Harry's green eyes met hers and he nodded.

"I'm glad that you do," Harry said. He placed his hand on Gwen's and looked deeply into her eyes with a smile. "And I also know that you'll be rewarded. I don't let anyone go underappreciated."

Gwen could personally vouch for that.

"So, why don't we swing back my place, and we can hang out for the rest of the afternoon," Gwen said, and she frowned. "Unless you're busy that is."

"Not for you, I'm not," Harry answered her and he edged closer to her, closing the gap.

Gwen could not believe how close he was up against her face. He wrapped his arm around her.

Before they could head out for the short drive back, Gwen's cell phone went completely wild. The blonde picked up the phone and went to answer it.

"Hello?" Gwen asked.

"Hey, Gwen, it's me, MJ, and…there's something going on at the planet…..some nutcase just arrived on a flying motorcycle," Mary Jane said over the phone. "You….might want to get over here and see this. You won't believe me in a million years!"

Harry heard the term "flying nutcase on a motorcycle" and he groaned loudly.

"Date's over, going to have to pick it up some other time," Gwen said and she leaned forward, kissing Harry.

Something about great power and great responsibility drove her and she hoped to knock around this bastard who picked the absolute worst possible time to crash things.

* * *

><p>Lobo arrived outside of the city. The panicked population looked up at him, and the Main Man shook his head.<p>

"Must be Earth, no one else would be that stupid to give me that look," Lobo said, shaking his head. "Alright, let's see what we've got here."

"And you know what the main problem is that we're facing. It's Spider-Girl! It's always Spider-Girl! She's a menace to this city and she's a danger to all of the citizens in it. She's too dangerous, she needs to be ran out of town and then tarred and feathered."

The booming voice of J. Jonah Jameson could be heard for all to say. Lobo smiled when he tracked the energy signature. The Phoenix was really close, he could taste it. And he was sure that it tasted really good.

"And I should know more than anyone else what's going on here, for I'm J. Jonah Jameson, the owner of the Daily Bugle!" Jameson shouted in a booming voice that echoed throughout the entire city.

His loud shouts caused anyone nearby to wince when he assaulted their eardrums with his words. Lobo made his way closer to this Daily Bugle building, and he saw the man behind the screen.

"So you know what's happening in the city?" Lobo asked and he aimed the rocket on his back at the wall.

There was an explosion that resounded everywhere and blew a hole through the wall.

The dust settled and Lobo sat perched on his bike, a wicked smile crossing over his face. He cleared his throat and a wide smile spread over his face.

"Ding, dong, Lobo calling!" the Main Man shouted.

Jameson got to his feet and shook his finger angrily. "Who the devil are you?"

"I'll level with you, I don't normally make a habit of hanging around with someone who has such an awful mustache, so I'll be honest," Lobo said and he bent down. His hands placed on the handle bars. "I'm looking for the Phoenix."

"The Phoenix, I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't lie to me, I hurt people that lie to me!" Lobo said and he shoved Jameson down onto the ground.

He smacked down onto the ground, and landed ass over tea kettle. His breath escaped from his body and he suffered a cracked rib.

"You'll hear from my attorney about this one, you loud mouthed…."

Lobo placed his hand down onto the mouth of Jameson and silenced him. It was an amazing feat.

"I'll let go now, because I don't want you to choke to death or something," Lobo said and he released Jameson's mouth, causing him to gag. "I'm going to ask you one more time and I'm going to do it nicely and stuff."

Lobo looked down at Jameson and a crooked grin went over his face.

"Where is the Phoenix?" Lobo asked him, with a twisted smile.

"You know, the Phoenix might not be here, but maybe you'd like to talk to me."

Lobo slowly turned around and wanted to see the person who thought that breathing was out of fashion.

* * *

><p><strong>To Be Continued On October 25<strong>**th****, 2014.**

**Lobo and Jameson in the same room, for however brief, is one of those once in a lifetime meetings. **


	13. Bounty of the Phoenix Part Two

**Chapter Thirteen: Bounty of the Phoenix Part Two. **

* * *

><p>Lobo slowly turned around and wondered who had decided that breathing was out of fashion. He saw a young woman with dark hair. She had a black shirt that wrapped around her body with a silver "S" symbol, along with a long coat, and a tight pair of black leather pants. Her companion was an attractive blonde with a black half shirt, along with a "S" symbol on it, showing her taut stomach. The flowing silver skirt did a nice job of showing her leg, along with a pair of black boots and a cape.<p>

"So, hello ladies, is there anything that I can do for you?" Lobo asked with a leer.

Claire knew that he was only giving her a leer, but already she wanted to take a shower. Or gouge his eyes out, that would work pretty well for her.

"Back away from him, now," Claire said, folding his arms.

"Maybe you should give me a little incentive to grease the wheels," Lobo said, and he stared at both of them. "S…well with that symbol, I know what you want. And you have a pair of nice…"

Kara delivered a huge kick right to Lobo's mouth causing him to be stunned. The Main Man flew ass over tea kettle and landed hard on the ground. He didn't expect anyone to kick him that hard and that fast.

Claire dove in, ignoring the yelling of Jameson and the cursing of Lobo. She picked him off the ground and punched him halfway across the city.

"Oh, you broads like to play dirty, don't you?" Lobo asked when he flew across the city.

Kara zipped in front of him and extended her fist outward. She punched Lobo down to the ground and caused him to land on the pavement hard.

"Okay, you broads really want to play rough, that's okay, the Main Man can play the game."

Claire dove down. The Main Man was ready to attack her. Lobo grabbed Claire's coat and hurled her halfway across the city.

"Hey, hands off my cousin, bitch!" Kara yelled and she slammed her fist into Lobo's solar plexes, doubling him over.

She kicked him a little bit lower to make sure that the point stood. Lobo doubled over with a growl when her foot met his crotch.

"Hey, hey, hey, that's dirty fucking pool!" Lobo yelled, and he whistled.

His hog appeared, hurling at them at the speed of light. His pride and his groin might have been injured for now. The Main Man mounted his bike.

"Why are you here?"

"Looking for a booty call," Lobo said in a biting voice, and he aimed a missile on his bike.

Kara saw the missile shoot into the city and she darted to intercept it, before innocent people could have been injured. She quickened the pace. It wasn't faster than a speeding bullet.

She flew in front of it, and grabbed it, forcing it upwards, and steering it away from civilization. The blonde hung onto the rocket, sweat rolling down her face.

"Boy, she really knows how to ride them, doesn't she?" Lobo asked, and he looked at the young girl. "How about you, ready to go…"

Claire dodged a stun blast from his bike. She was about ready to break his face just on sheer principle.

"Hey, as much as I'd like to go for a romp with you two broads, the main man is on a schedule, so I'm going to have to take a rain check," Lobo said and he pressed another button.

A huge stun grenade shot out towards Claire. She dodged it and it smacked down to the ground. An electrical pulse would have stunned even the likes of her.

Kara returned, her hair and face singed, but other than that she was in rather good spirits. At least she was alive, that was one thing that she couldn't deny. The blonde shook her head and gave a lengthy sigh.

"I vote for curb stomping that bastard," Kara said, her jaw set and her eyes flashing when she looked towards Claire.

"Yeah, I second that vote," Claire said. She wrung her hands with a sigh. "I want to know what he's after."

That was a good question and Claire was determined to find out to find out the answer. She could see his motorcycle leave. She flew at the speed of light and she locked onto the motorcycle, trying to stop it from going around.

Lobo was about ready to resume his search for the Phoenix. There was only one problem. Something rather firm grabbed onto the back of his bike. The Main Man turned his head halfway around and saw that one of the supersluts had gripped onto his bike.

"HEY, HEY, HEY, HANDS OFF THE HOG!" Lobo bellowed, and he could not believe that one of these bitches would dare put their hands on his ride.

"Not until you tell me what you're after," Claire said. "Or I'll tear it apart."

"You don't have the balls!" Lobo yelled, and Kara was up on the other end.

"Nice handlebars, pity if they got bent," Kara said, and she firmly gripped them.

"Fine, fine, fine, you know what I'm after," Lobo said and the two girls leaned in to listen to what this mad man had to say. "Your mother."

They should have seen that one coming. Just like the missile that shot right at Kara when she was on the front of the bike. Again she needed to intercept another missile into the city.

Lobo backed off at the highest speed and sent Claire careening into a building. She was invulnerable but that kind of hurt a little bit.

"You want a piece of me, have some of this, super bitch!" Lobo said, raising his hand into the air.

Claire dodged his attempt to run her over in midair with his motor cycle and grabbed him by the scruff of the neck.

"Ah, Frag," Lobo growled, and she hoisted him up off of the motor cycle. She reared back her fist and slammed it into his chest.

"FRAG, FRAG, FRAG!"

Lobo flew through the city, and crashed right through the windows of the Baxter Building and landed on the ground.

A man with brown hair with a silver streak going through it, looked up, mildly interesting. "Fascinating."

"Alright, you dead beat broad, I'm going to fuck you up now!" Lobo growled and he exited.

"What was that Reed?"

"Oh, just some alien invader crashed through the window," Reed Richards said. He looked on with a mild amount of interest, shaking his head. "And now he's gone."

* * *

><p>Gwen Stacy was suited up in a white and silver costume with spider web patterns that fit around her body. The eye holes in the mask could double as some kind of night vision and also was able to analyze bits on the crime scene.<p>

"So…Captain I Never Got a Codename, what do you think MJ said was the big deal?" Spider-Girl asked, when she webbed onto Harry's foot as he flew them there. She was thrown off by this method of travel the first time. This time she felt like she was getting better at dealing with it.

Harry dressed in a standard black robe with a hood. It wasn't fancy, but he quite frankly didn't care. There would be people on the Internet who would bitch about the state of his costume regardless so he was going to pick the most mundane one in the world deliberately to piss them off. The fact that he didn't have a codename likely was a spot of contention.

Anyone who called him Doctor Strange Junior though he would personally track down and have a discussion with and with a mother in SHIELD, Harry could find these people more easily. Not that he couldn't have found them easily but every little bit of help helped.

"You know, I don't really have an idea," Harry suggested and he honestly didn't. "She said that someone was riled up at the Bugle. And I don't think it was because of Jameson?"

Spider-Girl raised her eyebrow. "Jameson's mouth is bound to get him into trouble with anyone. And I have to rescue him despite my best judgment. Something, something, power and responsibility, you know."

"Yeah, the most annoying thing about a hero," Harry said.

Some people were jerks even though they weren't evil. Jameson was just a living breathing cartoon character full of hot hair complete with a Hitler mustache.

"I SWEAR, IF YOU DON'T GET THIS OFFICE CLEANED UP RIGHT, THEN I WILL FIRE YOU!"

'_No indoor voice, bad workplace manner, threats to fire people that he's not going to really follow through on,' _Gwen thought and she shook her head. _'Yeah, that's got to be Jameson.'_

Spider-Girl and the Sorcerer Supreme arrived at the edge of the window. Jameson turned around and pointed a finger at the two of them.

"You, you, this is all your fault!" Jameson yelled at Spider-Girl. "This guy has something to do with you, I just know it."

"The rising price of gasoline has something to do with me, according to you, Jolly Jerkass," Gwen said dryly.

"And that's just the kind of person you are resorting to name calling to get your point across, you wall crawling delinquent," Jameson said and he crossed his arms. "One day, you'll slip up and the city will see you as the menace that you truly are and…"

Spider-Girl at her wits end and she decided to take distraction action. She webbed J. Jonah Jameson's mouth shut. The interesting thing was that it took him a couple of minutes to realize that his mouth was webbed shut because he had really hit his anti Spider-Girl stride. He realized it and tried to tug at the webbing, but it was jammed.

"Don't worry, it dissolves in a couple of hours and non-toxic, although the taste is terrible," Spider-Girl said, and she could hear Jameson's muffles. She was sure that she was going to pay for her moment of fun. That was a good price to pay for peace of mind and peace and quiet from Jonah the Loudmouth. She could see Harry's critical gaze meet her eyes. "What?"

"You threatened to do it for ages, but I never thought that you would actually go out and do it," Harry said and he actually was fairly proud of Gwen for doing what she did. "And you know that's going to come back and bite you."

Spider-Girl shrugged. "I know it. I don't care."

They could see Mary Jane standing outside of the office, waiting for the two of them.

"Been a long time, hasn't it Red?" Spider-Girl asked, keeping up pretext.

She did save Mary Jane for a fatal encounter on a bridge after all. The bastard that did it was six feet under and hopefully rotting in an extremely special place. Of course, he ended up blowing himself up in an attempt to kill both Spider-Girl and Mary Jane.

"Yeah, so you got my message," Mary Jane said, and she spoke out of the corner of her mouth. "Youngest Sorcerer Supreme ever, huh?"

"Yeah," Harry agreed with her.

"Congratulations," Mary Jane said and she straightened up instantly. "There was this guy who crashed through the door when Jameson was doing one of his never ending anti Spider-Girl PSAs. He was some loudmouth riding a bike, and he smelled foul. He had language that would make a sailor blush too…"

Harry had a theory and he hoped that it wasn't it. There could be trouble if it was this guy.

"Could you describe him, please?" Harry asked her.

"I'll do you one better, I got a picture on my phone of him," Mary Jane said. "Just as he was being knocked out of the window by Superwoman."

"Superwoman?" Spider-Girl asked.

"Do you have a better name to call her?" Mary Jane asked and the two had a brief conference. They didn't really have a better name to call her. "But here's the picture of that guy, maybe you can make something of him."

Harry took the picture and there was a moment where he just had to groan with what he looked at.

"So, I'm guessing that's bad news," Spider-Girl said, looking at him. He did seem like a loud mouth punk and the fact that Claire planted her fist in his face was more than appropriate.

"That's the worst news," The Sorcerer Supreme explained. "His name is Lobo and he's an intergalactic bounty hunter, of the highest caliber. He blew up his own planet killing everyone on it, and he's wanted on twenty nine different planets."

"Sounds like a hell of a rap sheet," Mary Jane said and she shrugged. "What the hell is he doing on Earth?"

"Good question, we've got to find out," the Sorcerer Supreme said.

"We'll catch up with you later," Spider-Girl said, a knowing expression on her face underneath her mask.

Mary Jane watched the two of them go off to hunt for Lobo. She could hear the muffled rants of Jameson. Perhaps it was just her, but it was more annoying that his usual frantic Jumbo Tron ranting.

* * *

><p>Jean Grey thought in some twisted way that her day wouldn't really be complete if there wasn't someone out there trying to kill her. It was just an integral part of her day, she couldn't even begin to describe the ways of it.<p>

"Is everyone in the universe just conspiring to kill you now or is it just me?" Kitty asked, when she, Ororo, and Rogue joined Jean.

"It sure seems that way, doesn't it?" Jean asked, she wanted to make light of the situation, only it was really serious.

"What's this guy's problem anyway?" Rogue asked.

"Judging by the path of destruction that he's left, a lot," Ororo said and Kitty bounced up and down.

"Blur and Blurette will stop him though," Kitty said in an excited voice. She tried not to fangirl out about both of them, but it was hard.

Rogue raised her eyebrows. "Blurette?"

"Oh come on, it's not like you have a better name for them," Kitty said, placing her hands on her hips and staring at Rogue.

"Well, maybe I don't, but you got to know that Blurette isn't even a word," Rogue said shaking her head.

"Ladies," Ororo said, as much as the sexual tension these two had normally amused her, there were a few more important things to focus on.

"His name is Lobo, he's a foul bastard, and him being on Earth for any reason is a bad thing."

The girls looked up and saw the Sorcerer Supreme standing there, along with Spider-Girl. Kitty smiled at the arrival of both of them, even though she should be annoyed about the entire sneaking up on him thing.

"So, this guy is after Jean," Kitty said. "Maybe you can read his mind and see what makes him tick."

"Bad idea," Harry said, cutting off that idea. He was going to have to insist that Jean not go there ever. "Let's just say that there are some places where the mind was never meant to go. And you're better off not taking one step into that twisted mind, ever, trust me."

Jean was going to take his word for it, but she believed him. There were just some minds that were never meant to be read for any reason whatsoever.

"And Rogue, just before you think about it, draining him wouldn't be a good idea, because you'd be in years of therapy," Harry said.

"No, kidding, sugah, I'm still recovering from the time I accidentally drained Deadpool," Rogue said and the Southern belle shuddered when she thought about that.

Wade Wilson had a lot of problems, a lot of issues. He would keep a group of therapists pretty happy and in money. In fact his issues might have allowed those therapists to enjoy a good retirement.

"Oh, god, you got access to that guy's thoughts," Kitty said and she shuddered.

"Yeah, I got over it though, although I thought that I was a character in a fictional story for weeks," Rogue commented, shaking her head. "That was a bad time for me, a really bad time, I don't want to talk about it."

"As mentally scarring as that is, could we get back to Lobo?" Jean asked.

When she had her discussion with the Phoenix when she merged with it, she was warned that there would be people who were going to control her powers for all of the wrong reasons. Thankfully with her bond with Harry, she wouldn't have to worry about that. That wouldn't stop them from trying to take control of her powers though.

"Yes, I suppose that we should," Harry agreed. So far all was quiet on the western front, but he knew that eventually Lobo would track the Phoenix.

"Does he really think that he has a chance to take the Phoenix down?" Ororo asked. The thought of it seemed to be beyond her.

"Ro, I think that if you shove enough money under Lobo's nose, he'll think that he's capable of anything," Harry said, and he snapped his fingers. "That's it."

"What's it?" Jean asked.

Even though she was bonded with Harry, there was some times where she was locked out of his thought process.

"Spider-Girl, help the X-Men lure Lobo over, I'll do the rest," Harry said and he disappeared in a pop.

"What's he doing?" Kitty asked, and she turned to Gwen and Jean. They knew Harry the best and the longest, so she figured that they would know.

"You know, I'm pretty sure that he has a plan to stop Lobo," Gwen said.

Rogue looked up and she could see a blur fly down to the ground. It was Claire, who landed hard on the ground. Another blur was fighting above.

"Look, Kitty, it's the Blurette!" Rogue cheered and Kitty boffed her on the arm where it was covered.

"Oh will you get over that already, that was so five minutes ago!" Kitty said, and Jean cleared her throat.

They remained quiet and still, and Ororo turned towards her, impressed beyond all will.

"I don't know how you get them to fall into line," Ororo said, and Jean smiled, placing her arm around Ororo's waist.

"Alpha privileges and plenty of practice, I was in charge of their training, so I think that I've formed a good enough rapport with them," Jean said with a smile.

Ororo shrugged, that explained a lot. It really did. The X-Women waited to see what Harry had up his rather interesting sleeve.

* * *

><p>Carol Danvers couldn't go out for a cup of coffee without getting in the middle of something. And the middle of something was Lobo, oh boy she knew Lobo. SWORD had a file on Lobo that was pretty thick and growing thicker by the day.<p>

She could see Clara down on the ground and the group of X-Women and Spider-Girl sitting around. The SWORD agent and superheroine looked up in the sky and saw a frantic fight between Kara and Lobo.

Given how hard Kara punched Lobo, she was pretty sure that Lobo said something crass to her. And the fact that she punched him hard in the groin a second time and gave him a blast of heat vision for good measure.

"HEY, HEY, HEY!" Lobo yelled and he looked down on the ground, to see the Phoenix there. "Ah, there's the soon to be caged bird…"

He tugged on Kara's cape, which she was pretty sure that there was a law against, and pulled her halfway across the city. He slammed her against a building.

"Sorry, but I'm on a tight schedule, maybe we can do this some other time," Lobo said, and he dropped down to the ground. "Whoa, what's with the women in this world? Look as much as you want a piece of me, the Main Man has some business to take care of. But if you insist, maybe one quickie for the road, just get on your knees, and beg."

Carol felt the need to shower and peal all of her skin off.

"How about you stand down and leave," Carol said when she stared Lobo. He slipped through the defense grid because he was on a bike and not on a ship. A flaw that they would fix the next time because they didn't want someone like Lobo on this planet.

"Ah, a feisty little broad I…."

Ororo decided to make her move and motioned for Carol to step back. She did and a flash of lightning whipped from the sky, connecting with Lobo.

"Did that get him?" Jean asked.

"I don't think so," Claire said, this guy was highly durable.

"That fucking cleared my sinuses, thanks a lot," Lobo said and he looked at Ororo. "Ohhh, dark chocolate. I wonder if you'd melt in my mouth or my hand, toots."

Ororo controlled the elements to bring a gust of wind down at Lobo and caused him to hurl into the building.

"Why did we get stuck with crowd control?" Rogue asked, shaking her head. "Okay people back up, there's nothing to see here."

"You can't tell us what to do, I'm a member of the press, I have a right to know," a large man who looked like a shaven gorilla with blonde hair said.

"You know, Brock, you can either leave peacefully or I can drag you out of here, it's up to do really," Spider-Girl said, she honestly didn't care either way. This bastard should have been taken down a long time ago to begin with. He was a parasitic member of the press and he sold doctored photos to Jameson which fueled his anti Spider-Girl propaganda.

To his credit, Jameson retracted the statement when Brock's photos were proven to be well done forgeries and photo shops.

"Come on you…."

Spider-Girl knocked out Brock with one punch and forcefully dragged him out of the area by his ear.

Kitty whistled and slowly turned to Rogue. "Remind me never to get on her bad side."

"Believe me, I'm with you on that one," Rogue said and she turned around, seeing a duo trying to get into the scene. She snapped when she looked at them. "I thought I told you to stay on the other side. What's the matter with you people anyway?"

The group made their excuses but they were shuttled out. Mostly because they didn't want to suffer the same fate that reporter was.

Lobo could feel himself dazed and confused. He had one more trick up his sleeve, and it was a doozy.

"You see, I planted some fancy bomb in the city, and it's going to go boom, if the Phoenix doesn't come quietly with me," Lobo said and everyone looked at him. "Come on now, I don't bite, unless you beg me really, really nicely, and I mind be kind of enough to do it, if you scream twice."

No one knew whether or not Lobo was bluffing or not. Jean couldn't read his mind.

A flash indicated the arrive of Harry Potter. The Sorcerer Supreme was there.

"Hey, some fancy guy in a robe, oh I'm pretty…" Lobo said, but he was forced to his hands and knees like he was nothing.

"You should be scared," Harry said. "You are Lobo, the Last Czarian, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I blew up the rest of my planet, it was for a science project," Lobo said with no regrets. A wicked smile spread over his face. He spoke the next statement in a shifty little whisper. "Gave myself an A."

"You've been sent here to capture the Phoenix, and you have no bomb anymore because I just disabled it," Harry told him and he levitated the dismantled remains of the bomb that Lobo planted.

"Ah frag," Lobo grumbled when he realized.

Harry spoke without any sympathy in his voice. "Yes, you're very fragged."

Lobo would have got up to his feet. There was only one problem and that was that Harry didn't allow him to get back up to his feet. He struggled as he would.

"I'm going to make you a deal and this one is going to be worth your while," Harry said. "You leave right now and never plague Earth again, no matter what. I'll even pay you triple of what you were being paid."

"Triple…..ah now you've got my attention," Lobo said. He was starting to like the way this guy thought. "And…there's some kind of catch, isn't there?"

"Yes, there's always some kind of catch," Harry agreed with him. "And here's the catch, if you ever come back to Earth without my permission, you're going to regret it."

"Yeah, what can you do to me?" Lobo asked, and he could feel a crippling force on his spinal column. It caused unbearable pain to shoot down his body. It was worse than anything he ever experienced. "Besides that, yeah, besides that…..oh frag, that hurts!"

"Yeah it does," Harry agreed when he let him up. "There are fates worth than Death. I will exile you to a dimension where there's no women and no booze."

"Wait, such a place exists?" Lobo asked, and he couldn't believe that.

"Yes, it does, would you like me to show you?"

Lobo shook his head. "No, no, no, I'm good, I'm good, just give me the money that you promised me and I'll leave the world along. Scout's honor and all that good shit, you can count on me, chief."

"I better be able to," Harry commented, and there was a second where his gaze locked onto that of the Main Man's. "Here's your gold….providing you match my other condition."

"What other condition?" Lobo asked. "Look, we had a…."

He felt a pain like thumbscrews going through his tendons. Only he would get off on that one, so it was something far worse.

"Tell me who sent you hear for my mate," Harry whispered to her.

"Hey, wait, you're mated to the chick who has the Phoenix Force," Lobo said, he was almost in awe.

"Among others," Harry said.

"Damn," Lobo grumbled, he should be buying this man a beer. Several in fact, an entire truck load of beers.

"That didn't answer my question, Lobo," Harry told him.

Lobo cleared his throat, shaking his head. "Right, right, right, you see, it was D'Ken. Guy's bugfuck nuts, but he pays well. Not as well as you apparently, but he wants the Phoenix Force."

"D'Ken, I thought that he was exiled," Kara said when stepped in front of Lobo.

"Yeah, apparently it didn't stick, looks like he might be paying you visit since I didn't succeed, of course I wonder if he even expected me to," Lobo said and stepped back onto his bike. "And don't worry, I'll leave your little planet alone. Bunch of prudes here that can't take a joke anyway, I don't want to stick around for this shit. Have fun with the Shi'ar when they invade."

Crude demeanor or not, Lobo gave him a warning. Carol and Harry locked eyes and they knew that their work was cut out for them. Not only will the Shi'ar return but there was a potential for a Kree threat.

It was going to be a busy next couple of weeks.

* * *

><p>"I believe that Lobo has failed, my liege."<p>

D'Ken couldn't say that he was surprised. He would have been more surprised if Lobo actually succeeded with his mission. The Phoenix Force was a primal element and he needed to have it under his control.

He planned to have Lobo imprisoned anyway once he had what he wanted. The bastard was off somewhere, likely dead or drunk or more likely dead drunk. The investment that D'Ken had was only a drop in the hat for him. It gave him some valuable intelligence, especially from an old enemy that had been there.

"We're going to acquire the Phoenix, she's a danger to my empire," D'Ken said, his arms crossing over each other.

He stood on the throne and a figure loomed in the shadows.

"Yes, your majesty is in full control," a woman's voice stated. "After our sister was locked up…..but why did you lock her up, and not finish her off?"

"I have my reasons, allowing her to remain alive will afford me more respect than slaughtering her, even though she was put on the throne by Kryptonians," D'Ken said and he clenched his fist against the staff that he held. "And survivors linger on the planet Earth."

"And we already have one locked up…."

"We need someone who has intimate knowledge of the Kryptonian technology that we're bound to acquire from any survivors," D'Ken said. "Her resolve will be broken, we have ways to do so."

D'Ken didn't say much more. It went without saying the ways that the Shi'ar tortured their prisoners was immense and quite horrifying to say the very least.

"Prepare for the invasion, prepare to start the war."

The Phoenix would be there's and the spoils of war would be immense. D'Ken had no use for Earth so once he got all of the resources he wanted, it would be reduced to dust. Billions would perish. They had no use to the universe at large anyway.

Cal'syee Neramani, better known as Deathbird, was outwardly supportive of her brother. Inwardly was another matter entirely. She would use him as a means to her own ends and once she had what she wanted, D'Ken would meet the same fate that their parents and sister met.

As for their youngest sister, she remained locked up, she was the approved Empress, but Lilandra didn't have the strength to rule. Therefore she was captured and the Senate approved of D'Ken's return which ended a civil war over a period of seven orbital cycles around their sun.

"As you command, Emperor," Cal'syee said, a half calculating smirk flashing over her face.

Soon, she would have her divine right.

**To Be Continued On October 27****th****, 2014. **

* * *

><p><strong>So we have Lobo who is all kinds of fun and insanity showing up to stir up all kinds of shit. But it wouldn't be Lobo if he wasn't?<strong>

**I find it far more amusing for Harry never to be given a codename because it just frustrates people to no end. It's just like one of these days I'm going to give him the special mutant power to control butterflies just to piss people off. **

**The invasion is coming, yet again. Seems to be another day that ends in a "Y." And the Shi'ar royal family, you know there's some double dealing there. **


	14. Lazy Day, For Us

**Chapter Fourteen: Downtime, For Us At Least.**

* * *

><p>"Don't worry, Harry, I'm used to it," Gwen said waving off his apology when the two of them made their way back to her apartment. "But you know, we can always pick things up back up while we still can."<p>

"We should enjoy the downtime that we have," Harry said and Gwen arched her eyebrow. A momentary smile crossed her face when she looked at him.

"Downtime, I'm afraid I'm unfamiliar with that term," Gwen commented lightly and Harry shook his head.

"I am too, but I'm sure that between the two of us, we can learn what it's all about," Harry said, barely keeping the amusement out of his voice.

She fumbled with the lock on her apartment. She finally opened it up and entered inside. Gwen hit the light switch. Her apartment was pretty well maintained and there was a spacious couch there.

"Another alien invasion, we don't see those that often around here, do we?" Gwen asked, trying to lighten the mood. She placed her hand on Harry's. "You're not…"

"No, I'm not," Harry confirmed, his eyes focused on hers. "I just got to do what I can do and that's about all I can do with something like this. SWORD is adding some defenses to this planet and I am as well."

"Alien invasions do seem to be a bit out of the scope of the Sorcerer Supreme," Gwen suggested to him.

Harry gave her a smile. "Maybe they do, but I figured that I should do the best to protect the world from any threat. That was the vow that I took when I ascended to the mantle. I took some liberties with it."

Gwen nodded. That seemed fair enough. The two of them stood inside her apartment. The blonde reminded herself that their date might have gone in a certain direction if forces hadn't conspired to cock block her.

"Sit down, I'll get you a drink," Gwen commented to him. She had to create the right atmosphere for this one.

"Sure that'd be great," Harry said, watching Gwen's ass sway back and forth, with her tight pants stretched over her rear. It was obvious that she was working him up and he accepted that. He appreciated that even.

She placed her hands on the counter, with a smile. If Harry got up and fucked her over the counter now, she would have no objections. It appeared that would have to wait. The blonde walked over, both of their drinks fixed and she sat down next to him.

"I figured that you could use something a bit strong after what you've been through today," Gwen commented as she offered him the drink.

"Yeah, I did, thanks," Harry said, taking the drink. He decided to ask the burning question that was on his mind for a while now. "So, how did it feel to web Jameson's mouth shut?"

Gwen laughed in amusement. "It felt like it was long overdue."

She took the drink to her mouth and sipped it. Given her super powers, she had about as great of a tolerance as Harry did. She did have her limits; it was a matter of not reaching them.

"He'll be back eventually, and back on the anti Spider-Girl trail," Harry suggested and that prompted Gwen to sigh.

"Buzzkill, why must you be one?" Gwen asked him and Harry smiled at her.

"Sorry, it's in my nature, but you know that I have a point," Harry told Gwen.

Gwen placed her hands on her hips and sighed. "I know that you have a point and that's what makes it so galling."

Gwen got up to her feet with a smile and she glanced into Harry's eyes. Those eyes spoke to her so much a lot of the time.

"But, we didn't come here to talk about Jameson, did we?" Gwen asked him and she rested her hand down on his thigh. "Or we didn't come here to talk that much at all, did we?"

"No, we didn't," Harry said, standing up his full height. Thanks to the growth spurt she had as Spider-Girl, she was only an inch or two shorter than Harry. They could look each other eye to eye from where they stood without too much trouble.

His arm wrapped tightly around Gwen and he pulled her into his body. The blonde could feel things heat up, even more so when his tongue pushed deep into her mouth. Gwen engulfed his tongue into her mouth and smiled when she captured it.

His hands roamed all over her body, touching every single inch of her. That caused Gwen grind slowly up and down against him.

He reached around and pulled her top up over her head. A black bra contained a pair of nice breasts. She pushed her tight leather pants off next, revealing a pair of extremely lacy panties, along with a garter belt and sheer black stockings.

"It's only fair if you get unveiled next, isn't it?" Gwen asked him. She was impatient for the most part. She tried to wait but it was hard to hold herself back.

Gwen ran her hands down Harry's body. Slowly, the blonde undressed her soon to be lover. She could feel his muscles when she took off his shirt. Her nipples strained against the fabric of her top.

His abs were so great that Gwen could lick them. Which she did and that caused a part of Harry's body to rise. She smiled, cupping her hand over his crotch. She touched him, barely.

"Hold tight, big guy, I'm coming," Gwen whispered, giving him a squeeze.

With that playful motion out of the way, Gwen took his pants. With one firm tug, she brought them down. She ran her soft hands down his muscular legs, and brushed the top of her head across him.

"And that's for me," Gwen said, her lips moistening. She popped them together with delight.

The final frontier was there and she pulled his boxer shorts down.

* * *

><p>A large energy blast hit Nick Fury full on in the chest and blew the man to smithereens. He didn't have a hope in hell when it connected.<p>

Panning back, Lily Evans stood there with Coulson's weapon that she borrowed. She figured out how it worked. A smug grin crossed over her face, when she stepped over the broken fragments of Nick Fury LMDs.

"And something tells me you blowing off this much steam is long overdue."

Lily looked up from the debris and the carnage. She turned her attention to Carol Danvers, who stood in the doorway with a pretty significant shit eating grin on her face. Lily lowered the weapon as Carol lifted her hands to indicate that she came in peace.

"Hey, I'm not about to say anything against you rocking one against an LMD of Fury, I'm sure you're not the first one who has taken a crack at one of those for target practice," Carol said and she whistled. "But when you let off some steam, you let off some steam."

"Yeah, I do," Lily agreed and she patted the energy cannon. "Well at least I know that it works. And just in time with the Shi'ar coming over. From what I heard, their emperor, you know the one that's caused all of those problems, was supposed to be exiled. The only reason why he wasn't executed was that his younger sister stepped in."

"Wasn't this the same younger sister that he displaced from the throne and had imprisoned?" Carol asked.

"The very same," Lily said, shaking her head. "That just proves that there is no honor, whether or not blood is involved, among some people. And you know, D'Ken is pretty much batshit nuts and all that."

Lily thought that was the worst thing about all of it. People now saw Earth was an easily conquered battle ground. The last couple of alien invasions were staved off by luck and circumstances.

"It's a damn good thing that SWORD is really working on trying to figure out a way to stave them off," Lily said, levitating the chunks of the destroyed Fury LMD's off of the ground. Mostly because it gave her something to do so her hands wouldn't be idle.

The governments of the world were unprepared to deal with alien invasions. Their solution would be to launch missiles at the crafts. A good solution in theory until one brought up the point that the alien vessels had force fields that would bounce the missiles off.

"We couldn't do it alone," Carol said, and she smiled. "Harry has the connections that could form a defense. It should be up within the next three days."

"Which means the alien invasion will be there before then," Lily said and Carol looked at her.

"Must you be a buzzkill?" Carol asked her, half amused and also half amused.

Lily shrugged her shoulders. "Sorry, that's what I do. But I take the pragmatic approach to everything. It's what keeps me alive."

The Kree technology that they did drop and leave behind might help them take down the Kree if they ever came back. It was important to keep any alien technology off of the streets and out of the hands of anyone who could use it. The consequences were just far too many to mention.

"So, I didn't talk to you, but you and Harry…"

"What do you think happened?" Carol asked her.

"The same thing that happens with my son and any woman, likely," Lily said, with pride in her voice.

"So, I have to ask…"

"Hold that thought Carol," Lily said, and she got an incoming transmission. It was brief and to the point, but she thought that it touched on a lot of the main points.

Carol waited patiently or perhaps not so patiently. Lily made sure that she got it.

"It's Maria, she's confirmed the meeting about the new defenses, and the critiques that Harry had for SHIELD," Lily said. She could see that Carol looked fairly confused and Lily decided to elaborate. "Harry had his team hack into SHIELD's database and he found a list of all of the security exploits."

"I bet Harry found a lot," Carol said and she frowned. "Especially given the people that he uses to do something like that."

"You would assume correctly, Carol," Lily said. "It isn't as bad as you would think it is. But any hole should be closed up. Especially when there are dangerous alien threats looming."

Lily looked at the fallen debris of Nick Fury body parts. She thought that this proved to be a interesting training exercise. Maybe it was just her but she felt much better when she let off some steam.

"What time does Maria want to meet us?" Carol asked.

"ASAP, no later than tomorrow," Lily told her. "Especially since Fury has left on business of some sort."

"Let me guess, it's classified," Carol commented to her.

Lily smiled. "You know it. But Fury tends to play a very interesting game in the best of times, And with all of the alien invasions that are in the mix, you can only imagine what he's up to right now."

Carol and Lily cleared up at this base. After a quick stop to double check something, it would be off for a meeting with Maria Hill. Lily had a thick folder of suggestions from Harry. He would deliver them himself but Sorcerer Supreme business called.

* * *

><p>Harry Potter exited the portal from another mission that was successfully done. There were a few scratches on his body, his enemy played rough. The only problem with that was that Harry Potter played just a little bit rougher.<p>

The adventure was the usual fare for the Sorcerer Supreme. Some entity with a name that no one could spell much less pronounce turned up. They caused some trouble. There was a fight with lots of magic thrown around. Harry trounced the enemy and with any luck, he went home before dinner.

He returned to check on his injuries first of all. If he brought some magical virus to this world, that could be a catastrophe. That happened with one of the previous Sorcerer Supremes and it lead to the Black Plague.

"Check for any foreign bacteria," Harry said, and he was scanned.

So far his scans came up clean on an initial process. He would have wait for a deeper process so that gave him some time to think about this information.

With all of the alien invasions going on, Harry didn't lose sight of an important quest. That was finding the Unholy Trinity of objects, the Deathly Hallows, the keys of eternity, whatever you call. There had been numerous dead ends, but Harry thought that he hit his first big break.

At least he hoped that it was his first big break in the case of the Unholy Trinity. He wouldn't know unless he looked into it. And he couldn't very well look into it until any and all scans had been complete.

He checked his messages while he waited. Earth was still intact, which was a good thing. He still played the waiting game for the alien invasion which most certainly wasn't that good of a thing. He drummed his fingers nervously and carefully.

"One final scan, just to make sure," Harry told the device.

His mother wasn't too happy about James handing the Invisibility Cloak to Dumbledore. Especially given the Cloak might have been useful in many ways. Since Harry and Lily never returned, the Cloak remained with Dumbledore, at least until the point he died. He was found down in the shower with several puncture marks on his back and neck. The official story was that it was a horrific accident. The unofficial story was that one of Dumbledore's many enemies that he made over the decades paid him a visit and caught him whilst he was vulnerable.

The Cloak was lost but the Cloak wasn't the only thing that was lost. Several of Dumbledore's personal items vanished. The black market would be a good place for such items to be sold. Those who sold items that belonged to such a famous, some would say infamous, wizard would net a hefty little profit.

Harry tried to follow the papertrail several times. It lead to nothing but a couple of dead ends. He went around and around in a circle and he resembled a lost little puppy dog chasing his tail.

"Scan complete, no foreign bacteria found."

"Good," Harry said in relief. He figured as much but he had to make sure never the less.

The young man got to his feet and shook his head. He returned to the Cloak. The holographic image of the Unholy Trinity appeared. They seemed unassuming at first glance. Perhaps their powers were greatly overblown. He honestly didn't care himself, if it wasn't for the people who would go after such objects were unsavory.

The one thing that could not be denied was the trail of blood that these powerful objects left behind them. Harry grimaced at the thought. The wand was the worst of them, followed by the stone.

The Cloak on the other hand was rather harmless and mundane. Not many people thought that an Invisibility Cloak would be worth the trouble to kill someone. Given half of the chance, they would do it to complete the set. But they weren't going to go after the Cloak before they did the wand or the stone.

The Cloak was Harry's direct link to his heritage. It was useless to him because he knew spells that could allow him to become invisible.

'_More of the principle of the matter, really,' _Harry thought to himself. The Cloak flashed right in front of him.

A lot of magical artifacts passed through several sets of hands from Dumbledore's estate. The final stop for these artifacts would be the country of Brazil.

Brazil was an interesting place. It was a hub of activity where it was rumored that several top HYDRA agents disappeared there after the second World War and several sympathizers of HYDRA still lived there today. HYDRA was very interested in the occult. Thus they would be interesting in the Unholy Trinity.

Whether they had the capabilities to put it to any kind of horrifying use, Harry didn't know. All he knew was that HYDRA would move heaven and Earth in an attempt to get their hands on something like that. Especially when it meant that they would control Earth.

Harry sent off a brief text message to clarify something.

**So, anything?'**

Harry waited for the person on the other end to text him back. It turned out that he didn't have to wait all that long.

**All's quiet. That makes you worried, doesn't it?**

Harry fired back with another answer.

**Yes, that makes me worried. It makes me extremely worried. **

Harry tried not to be worried, but there were sometimes where he had a feeling that he fought an uphill battle.

**SHIELD is getting everything in order to your specifications.**

Harry nodded; he worked on destroying SHIELD's security grid. It took his team a lot longer to find a hole then it might have normally. Given some of the bright minds that worked on that team, SHIELD should be pleased.

**I'm going to head off to Brazil. I have a lead on something. I'll see if it's true. Contact me, if anything breaks.**

Harry shouldn't have any problems. He would know immediately if something touched down. It just gave him peace of mind to know that people watched things when he couldn't.

**Good luck.**

Harry smiled; he would need more than luck if some of the more unsavory people beat him to the Unholy Trinity.

* * *

><p>D'Ken considered the failure to grasp onto the Phoenix a momentary setback at best. The Emperor of the Shi'ar's lips crossed into a sneer.<p>

Everyone walked on eggshells around him. There were rumors of the deal he had to make to get back onto the throne and how there was an extremely powerful force that backed his every move. None of them wanted to ask any questions.

"Make sure no one disturbs me, Gladiator, is that understood?" D'Ken asked and he turned to face Gladiator.

"Yes," Gladiator said to him in a gruff voice. He added as an afterthought. "My Emperor."

There was a long time when D'Ken was in the darkness where he didn't hear those words. He enjoyed hearing than once again. It was like music to his ears.

He slipped inside. The door shut and bolted behind him. His guest was here on schedule.

"Long time enemies join forces against a mutual enemy," said his guest. He leaned forward to reveal Ronan, who looked extremely ragged. "I barely escaped the last time. A chunk of my fleet was not so lucky."

"The power of the Phoenix is vast, and you should consider yourself lucky that you survived," D'Ken said somberly.

Ronan agreed that he was extremely lucky. His fleet of ships just barely made it back to the Kree homeworld completely intact. They needed repairs, otherwise, they would turn around in greater numbers and hit Earth hard. This would be especially true since they received intelligence that the Phoenix left the planet and some of their greatest protectors followed her in an attempt to reign her in.

"And you wish to be the one to control that vast power…"

"It has been written in the stars that the one who controls the Shi'ar should control the universe's ultimate power," D'Ken said and Ronan stared at him. "But I understand that you have your own problems with certain elements of your past that you have been unable to shake completely free."

"Kryptonians, there are at least two of them who have survived, but there might be a third," Ronan said, cracking his knuckles.

D'Ken had his share of problems with Krypton that went without saying. He also had his share of problems with the Kree. He wanted to weigh all options and more importantly how that benefitted him.

"What can you offer me, Ronan?" D'Ken asked.

"I can assist in in obtaining the Phoenix Force," Ronan told him. He decided to hit it whilst the iron was hot. "Let's face it, you might not be able to capture her and the Kree have had bad luck against her. With the two of us working together, there's nothing out there that can stop us."

D'Ken stopped and considered what he was told. That was an interesting proposal in more ways than one.

The Kree and the Shi'ar working together was a thought at one time that he couldn't really fathom. Desperate times called for desperate measures.

"Our Armada is ready, we can divert the Earth's attention towards us," Ronan said. "All we ask for in return is the Kryptonian technology on the planet and the planet itself. The Shi'ar can do what it wishes with all of the humans."

"An interesting proposal," D'Ken muttered underneath his breath.

He was not a fool, far from it. He knew that there was potential for Ronan to turn those weapons that he captured on the Shi'ar and finish them off.

A deal with the devil wasn't something that D'Ken was opposed to doing. He just needed a fallback plan in case things went sout.

"Do we have a deal or don't we, D'Ken?"

D'Ken made sure he looked Ronan in the eyes. He knew madness for he stared back at it from behind a mirror every single day of his life. The man extended his hand and reached forward. He clasped hands with Ronan and shook it.

"We have a deal."

A match made in heaven or a match made in hell that depended on your perspective.

Deathbird listened closely to this meeting and she couldn't believe that her brother would do something to this extent. Her brother made some questionable decisions in the past.

This topped them all however. The Kree was a bastard version of another race. They didn't deserve any consideration from the Shi'ar. If anything they deserved to be blasted off of the map, to do the universe a favor against polluting the gene pool.

She curled her hands into fists and was determined to do something about this. Confronting her brother wouldn't end well for her. It would only end her up in a cell with her sister and the other occupant that was on board D'Ken's mothership.

* * *

><p>Claire Kent did love the wild and unpredictable nature in space. Things proved to be easier for her when she wore a skin tight space suit that formed and fit to every curve that she had. The suit was experimental, but it allowed her to retain her powers and her mobility. Not to mention it also allowed her to be protected in the vastness of space.<p>

"It's working out well, mother," Claire said, brimming with a new amount of excitement. She placed her hands on her hips and looked around.

"It's not too tight, is it?" Lara asked. With her daughter's powers, she could have a growth spurt at any time when she hit certain maturities. It was a good thing that Harry was there to help her through one of her maturities. Otherwise it would have been a real horror show when she got through it.

"No, it's not too tight," Claire confirmed, it was just right in fact. "Things are quiet out here in the frontier of space today."

When they were on the cusp of a pair of alien invasions, Claire worried that there would be an attack coming. So far, it was so good. She hoped that would keep up.

"I think that it's time to head on home then, if you've completed a trial run of the suit," Lara told her daughter. "Your vitals check out as they should be."

Claire could hear a loud bang and at first she thought that it was something on the moon. There were a couple of SWORD bases on the moon and she thought that one of them had an equipment failure.

She rushed over to the moon in a blur, faster than a speeding bullet. She dropped down and looked around carefully.

'_Everything is fine,' _Claire thought, folding her arms underneath her chest in surprise and wonderment. She wondered if she was just hearing things. It might have not been a good thing super powers or not but there were alternatives.

Suddenly, another crack echoed and a vortex opened. Claire looked up, her mouth agap and hanging open wide.

The Kree Armada flew towards her. It was in greater numbers than the one that invaded previously.

There was no way that they wouldn't have spotted her alone in space. Claire swallowed and reported. "Mother, we might have a bit of a problem. The Kree have returned."

* * *

><p><strong>To Be Continued On 1030/2014. **

**We have a problem, actually we have several problems here. **


	15. Alien Invasion, Must Be Thursday

**Chapter Fifteen: Alien Invasion, Must Be Thursday.**

* * *

><p>Claire Kent thought that a problem might be grossly understating what she just ran smack dab in the middle. The words might have not been invented to adequately describe what she came up against. It wasn't a problem, oh no far from it.<p>

She just ran head long into a full grown crisis. There was an alien invasion of some sort and these ships didn't seem too friendly at all. Especially given that the last time the Kree fought her. The memories of that burned freshly in Claire's mind.

The only solace was that Claire was almost sure that they didn't see her. At least they didn't see her yet. At least that's what she thought. At least that's what she hoped. Her hands raised up onto the top of her head.

Actually she was pretty sure that they didn't see her. Seconds later, there was an action that caused her to question that answer.

The loud click, click, click, click, of a cannon turned towards her. The cannon heated up and an energy weapon blasted at her.

Not wanting to die again, Claire zipped out of the way of the fire power. The next explosion caused pieces of debris to fly every which way. She felt the breath leave her body. Her eyes continued to follow the progress of the energy weapon.

She listened in closely.

"Clara, Clara, Clara, are you there?" Lara asked in concern.

"Yes, I'm there, but the problem is so is the Kree," Claire said.

"Listen to me, Clara, get out of there, and get help as soon as you can…but do not engage them. It will be fatal for you if you try."

Claire groaned she thought it was too late. It wasn't about engaging them. As far as she was concerned, engaging these people weren't the problem. It was the fact that they engaged her that could be just a bit of a problem. Actually that could be just a bit of a big problem. Her heart hammered heavily over her chest.

'_Okay, focus, you can do this,' _Claire thought, shooting forwards as fast as a speeding bullet. She could hear the ships whiz after her as fast as they could.

It was a very tense situation. The Kree Armada was set up for some kind of alien invasion. They didn't forget about the Kryptonians that they were after. And Claire wasn't completely sure that Ronan forgot that she punched him right in his ugly face. Actually that was something that Claire was completely sure about, she knew that Ronan didn't forget that. She made that kind of impression on that bastard accuser.

Faster than a speeding bullet, Claire gained some momentum. Her breath hitched into her body when she was flying.

'_Okay, I've just got to avoid them, that's no problem, no sweat even,' _Claire thought.

There was a blast that nearly took her out. She was pretty sure that the SWORD base was around here somewhere. If she could only get there, she might have a fighting chance. Her heart hammered heavily against her chest.

Claire sensed that might have been a problem. She could get to the SWORD base but she might not make it there.

"I'm sending word now, but you got to really find a way out of there," Lara said.

"I know mother, but I'm finding that kind of difficult now," Claire said in a near huff.

Claire honestly didn't mean to be so short with her mother. The problem was that these Kree ships came up on her ass and there was no way to dodge them. She tried to fake them out but they were chasing them.

She tried to get them to blast each other but there was just one problem. They weren't going for that one either. She avoided their attacks when they tried to blast her. They fired a series of shots at the girl.

"Stand down, this will be easier on you if you do!" The Kree scouter yelled at the top of his lungs.

Claire gritted her teeth, she knew easy and going after these nutcases were the furthest thing from easy. She shook her head. It was time to do something really drastic. It was time to try something that Harry taught her. It was also something that Harry made her swear never to attempt to do, unless she was in a situation where she couldn't escape doing it.

Desperate times often called for desperate measures. Claire felt the desperation burn through her eyes. Faster than a speeding bullet, she shot through the air like a cork. She quickened her pace when she kept moving. She went faster, faster, faster, faster. She was gaining some steady momentum. Her pulse raced and to be honest she got a little bit excited the faster that she moved. There was something about putting herself in danger that really got her blood pumping.

She was faster than a speeding bullet and more powerful than a locomotive for a reason. The Kree Armada were pretty good as well. Claire couldn't quite shake them when they came up on her ass. The girl's teeth gritted when they approached her. They got even closer. Her pulse raced.

This turned into a deadly game of duck and dodge. The alien ships seemed determined to bring her in alive. She wasn't really sure that was a good thing.

"Mother, I can't shake them, and you know that I can't keep this up forever," Claire said frantically. Her pulse quickened and she was sure that her mother could monitor those vital signs through the suit.

The good news was that her suit held up underneath the scrutiny of space. That was about the only good thing that came out of today's adventure. Her heart hammered the edge of her chest furiously. It was like some kind of war beat found its way into her heart.

"I'm radioing for help, I have to get around their signal, the Kree has already disrupted all radio communications….."

Claire could see a flash of something. She hoped that it wasn't her life flashing before her eyes. She didn't want to die again.

The Kree ship blowing up and forcing the occupants to evacuate indicated to Claire that it wasn't her life that was in jeopardy. At least she got a reprieve for a couple of minutes, but things proved to be more dangerous now than ever before.

Claire looked up, her eyes widening like saucers. This was not over, this was just beginning.

* * *

><p>Jean and Kara had been taken up to the SWORD main headquarters by Harry. They were discussing their plans. The trio knew that they had a very busy time ahead of them. Harry was more busy than either of the girls because he had the responsibility of being the Sorcerer Supreme on his plate.<p>

"So when are you leaving for Brazil?" Kara asked him.

"I'm leaving tonight to get the Cloak, but it shouldn't take too long," Harry said, walking between both of the girls.

Jean took his right arm and Kara took his left arm. It was a nice position to be in.

"That's just one object though, isn't it?" Kara asked. After Harry explained to her how dangerous these objects, she could tell why he was so obsessed in bringing them in and making sure no one else had them. She would be doing the same thing if she was in his place.

Kara was really glad that she wasn't. The blonde stooped when her eagle hearing picked up something. Quick footsteps, frantic heart beating, there was something happening.

Carol rushed down the hallway no sooner than they were talking. Harry raised his eyebrow. Perhaps this was some kind of sixth sense that he was gifted with, but he could smell trouble a mile away.

"What's up?" Harry asked, deciding to get short, sweet, and to the point.

"All incoming communication is scrambled, and I can't even get a signal to Earth, and there have been several ships sighted."

"Let's see if I can work around what their day," Harry said, walking over to join Carol. He allowed her to lead him into the main control room.

Carol shrugged her shoulders. They actually were trying that for the better part of twenty minutes. "More power to you."

Unlike most magical users, Harry had a basic understanding about how technology worked. Actually given that he grew up in the real world, he had a good understanding about how technology worked. He cracked his knuckles and got to work. The green eyed wizard slowly typed away on the computer and tried to bring up what he needed to bring up.

"Yeah, they've seen some sort of blocking signal, it's very advanced technology," Harry said and he amended. "Extremely advanced technology, as my pipeline to the Fortress of Solitude has been blocked as well."

"You're kidding me, right?" Kara asked, raising her eyebrow. The fact that someone was able to block incoming signals in and out of the Fortress terrified her half to death. The blonde bit down on her lip fiercely.

"No, I wish I was, but believe me, I'm not," Harry said and he prepared to see what he could do. There were more than a few workarounds to something like this if one was willing to be creative enough. Harry had the creativity to pull through with something like this.

Actually there were two things that were needed for this to work. First there was creativity. Then there was patience, Harry reminded himself ot that much.

Harry hoped that he could break on through. Kara watched nervously by his side.

Jean remained quiet up until this point. She was in extremely deep concentration and she sighed. "Something's happening….something bad is happening."

Carol was going to say that that was not very helpful. She did hold her tongue on the simple account that the view screen crackled to life. Seconds later, an ugly and hideous image appeared on it.

They were waiting for this message. Harry, Carol, Jean, and Kara were greeted by the foul face of the one and only D'Ken of the Shi'ar empire. The moment they saw him, the group found themselves unable to do so.

"Okay, I got all communication restored, or I should once this guy finishes giving his spiel."

"Great, he's going to monologue, isn't he?" Carol asked.

"I'm afraid so," Harry said and he put his arms around Jean and Kara, both of them groaning at that thought.

They stood there and took their medicine, waiting for D'Ken to say his piece.

"People of the Earth, my name is D'Ken and all you need to know is that I am the Emperor of a more powerful civilization than your puny planet," D'Ken announced. His eyes didn't blink. They were full of madness.

"And here comes the stroking of the ego, that's just wonderful," Carol said. She supposed that she should be quiet and listen to what this nutcase had to say.

"We will leave your planet alone, if you give us one simple thing…."

Harry knew what it was. He waited for it.

"This girl is the vessel for the Phoenix Force, hand her over to us within one of your orbital cycles, and you'll be spared," D'Ken said. It wasn't framed as a request. He framed it as a demand that he expected to be carried out because he was the superior race.

Harry didn't take D'Ken at his word. It was just one of those things where the man lied out of both sides of his face. The man was of questionable sanity to begin with.

"And here come the consequences," Carol said, she was almost bored by this. She had been through this entire song and dance many times. And she hadn't even been working with SWORD the first couple of times.

"And if you don't hand her over, Earth will be reduced to a boiling cinder," D'Ken commented when he rubbed his hands together. There was a moment where he looked rather pleased at himself.

"He's completely nuts, you all realize that, don't you?" Jean asked.

She knew that handing herself over was a bad idea. The thought never crossed her mind but she knew that it was a completely bad idea.

"We figured that out, thanks," Carol said. She turned to Harry. "Please tell me you got the communication back up?"

"Yes, I do, and just in time it looks like," Harry said frowning.

"Harry, Clara has run into Kree's Armada," Lara said in a panicked voice.

This caused Kara to go completely and utterly rigid at the thought of that. She feared that the Kree would come back and she shouldered some of the blame of having them come here in the first place. It was no use angsting over spilled milk. They just had to move on with their life and make the best of a bad situation.

"The Kree and the Shi'ar here…do you think that they're working together?" Carol asked.

Kara shook her head. That was a thought that she couldn't fathom.

"Sworn enemies, I doubt it, but if they are, it won't be for very long," Kara said, and she gave a grim smile.

"Desperate times make for strange bedfellows," Carol commented.

Kara looked skeptical. "Maybe, but how long do you think that the two of them are going to stay in bed without kicking each other out of bed?"

Harry could see one silver lining in this storm cloud. The only good thing about this was that Ronan and D'Ken would be fingering the knives to put in each other's backs. Their respective races wouldn't be too happy with an alliance as the Shi'ar and the Kree battled each other several times. Killing several on both sides in what could be considered senseless invasions.

It was a match made in alien invasion hell.

"Is our little defense grid online yet?"

"Eighty seven percent," Carol said and Harry sighed. "I thought you said that you wanted it done right?"

"I did," Harry confirmed to her grimly. Of course getting it done right meant that they would have to do this the long way around. Some might say it was the fun way. Others would consider it to be done the insane way.

Both sides would have points.

Kara was already suited up, and Jean and Harry were halfway out the door behind her. He stopped and turned to Carol.

"Keep me posted on anything coming in," Harry said.

"Right," Carol agreed. She would have wished them good luck, but the only problem was she wasn't sure that luck was going to be sufficient with what they had to deal with.

Harry, Kara, and Jean were out in space.

"Okay, I would say that this wouldn't be a problem after what happened last time," Jean said, folding her arms directly underneath her chest. "I just swoop in there and blast them just like I did the last time. There shouldn't be any sweat, should there?

"I would say that would be the case, but this time I think they might be ready for you," Kara said. She didn't know whether or not anyone could ever prepare for something like the Phoenix. She just knew that they would be prepared.

"They might not be prepared for this!" Harry shouted, when he lifted his hands up.

He could use any kind of incantation to make a big bang. Harry wasn't that big on calling out his attacks like a lot of magical users were. He was a man of action, quick, decisive. Sometimes it was ugly but damn if it didn't get the job done.

The action was a big bang and one of the Kree motherships exploded. Two more combusted with each other and Harry trapped them in a void.

He could see Claire turn towards him. A grateful look crossed her face and the dark haired girl practically flew into Harry's arms. He held her up with a smile on his face.

"Good to see you as well, but we got to get back home to regroup," Harry said, guiding her down.

"Right, sorry, I didn't mean to run into the Kree Armada," Claire said, shifting nervously.

Harry gave her a smile. "No one means to run into trouble. It generally finds them in no time flat."

Claire thought that if that wasn't the case, she didn't know what was. The young man guided her back down, as they appeared to Earth.

"The Shi'ar is here as well or they're coming rather," Harry told her.

"Wonderful, more good news," Claire said, sarcasm barely staying out of her voice. Harry turned his expression towards her. "What?"

Claire slumped her shoulders and saw Harry's stony gaze.

"Sarcasm doesn't become you young lady," Harry said. "We need to get back to the Fortress, that's going to be the first thing that they're going to go after."

Claire was well aware that this was the first thing that they were going to go after. Her nerves felt like they were on fire. Determination flashed through her eyes when she prepared herself for the next battle.

* * *

><p>"I can't say that I'm happy about the fact that you engaged the Kree, but I am happy about the fact that you got out of it alive," Lara said.<p>

"That makes two of us," Claire said to her, but Kara nudged her.

"That makes three of us," Kara said with a stern expression on her face and Harry cleared his throat.

"That makes all of us."

The group found their way back to the Fortress, but they were joined by Gwen who Harry picked up on his way back. They appreciated her expertise and her influence based on this situation.

"If that was a small fleet though, I hate seeing what a big fleet is,' Claire said and Kara sighed.

"Kree has looted a number of planets in their time," Kara said and she could barely suppress the sigh that came out of her mouth. "You know, they pride themselves on being the superior race and all that junk."

"But they can't be so superior if they are the ones that keep stealing everyone's ideas," Gwen said with a raised eyebrow and Kara nodded in agreement.

"Exactly, exactly, exactly," Kara commented, and she sighed. She hated to repeat herself like that.

She was just glad to have her cousin back one hundred percent. Kara had to admit that she did pretty well for herself. She wished that she had gotten further on her training because the rudimentary basics that she had.

"The Kree is just one piece to this problem," Harry said. "The Kree might want to keep Earth intact, but the Shi'ar aren't going to be so charitable as to wipe out all of the people and keep the people intact. They only care about one set of resources."

Harry's eyes lingered on Jean. She could feel anger that the Shi'ar wanted to use her powers to enslave countless. The Phoenix told her that there had been numerous attempts over the years for the Phoenix to be used as a tool to enslave. This was one of the many races that would do that.

"I'm not going to give myself up to the Shi'ar," Jean said firmly.

Harry could see that she was heating up and about ready to get upside. His arms wrapped around her body and he pulled her into a tight hug. The redhead relaxed for a moment when he tightened his arms around her, pulling her into him.

"And no one expects you to surrender yourself," Harry whispered in her ear. He could feel Jean relax in his grip suddenly. "And you know that I wouldn't let you."

"I know and thank you," Jean said. Her lips found his with a brief kiss. That caused her to relax into his arms.

"But, you know that the Kree would cream themselves over all of this," Gwen said, getting them back into the matter at hand.

"Thanks for the visual image first of all," Harry commented in a dry tone of voice. "And yes, they would, which is why we need to enact the security protocols to keep it locked out and keep it out of their dirty hands."

One could get the impression that Harry didn't have too much fondness to the Kree in general just by the way that he spoke about them. And one would be right. Putting the world in danger was the easiest way to get on Harry Potter's bad side. Attacking his girls was another way and Kree had done both.

"You know, maybe we should worry about this, and you worry about what you need to worry about," Kara said. She referred to the Unholy Trinity.

Harry turned towards her and grabbed her hands tightly.

"Nothing is more important to me right now then protecting this planet," Harry told her and Kara shuddered at how firm his tone was.

He was the type of man who got things done and Kara could feel the firmness in his voice. That caused more excitement to blow through her body. The blonde frowned, she really understood.

"If you're sure?" Kara asked. She thought that he was certain by that tone.

"Yes, and you want to be out there, don't you?"

"Damn right I do!" Kara yelled and she clenched her fist together. She realized how dramatic and overblown that she seemed. The blonde had a little bit of red flush about the area of her cheeks. "Sorry."

"Don't worry, you're passionate," Harry said to her. "That's not a problem, and I can see that it runs deeply from female Kryptonians."

"Yes, it does, sometimes it gets us in trouble," Lara said and her gaze shifted towards Claire's.

Claire tried not to look too sheepish at being called out on the carpet by her mother. The dark haired girl cleared her throat to avoid further embarrassment. "I'm going to feel like an idiot for even asking this, but I suspect that you have a plan of some kind."

"You would suspect correctly," Harry agreed. "Sooner or later, the Shi'ar and the Kree are going to turn on each other. Birds have to fly, fish have to swim, and these two will put the knives in each other's backs…..Lara could you bring up the full view of the satellites, please?"

"It would be my pleasure," Lara said with excitement brimming from her voice. She waited for the satellites to flash to light and to life. There was a clicking sound, followed by a clacking sound when they appeared.

"See those?" Harry asked and they nodded to say that they did. "Those are the hot spots. They're trying to coordinate that as two separate alien invasions so they have plausible deniability with their people."

"But if one of them gets in the other's way, they'd really have no choice, but to shoot at them," Kara said. She leaned forward with a pressing question delivered at Harry. "Right?"

"Correct," Harry confirmed, and the blonde beamed, nearly bouncing up and down. "We're going to have to maneuver them into those hot spots, cross our fingers, and protect the Earth, making sure that it has minimal damage."

"Seems like a sound strategy, then and…"

"Gwen, I need you to be my eyes and ears on the ground, is the suit ready?" Harry asked her. "Because, you're going to need all the protection that you can get."

"Yes, it's upgraded and ready," Gwen said. Harry gave her a critical glance and she added. "And yes, I tested it out."

"I believe you," Harry said, allowing her to steal a quick kiss. Once that was done, there was another person that Harry needed to check into. The young man inched over to the view screen and set it up for communication. "Carol, Carol, are you there?"

"Yes, Harry, I'm here, what do you….."

"I just want to make sure that you're in position and ready for the invasion."

"We're at ninety two percent, by the way, I guess that's going to have to do," Carol said, and Harry didn't say anything. "And yes we're ready."

Harry just hoped that eight percent wasn't going to screw them over. Jean, Kara, and Claire all suited up and prepared for battle.

"Those suits should protect you and they pack a punch, so choose your shots and make them count," Harry informed the girls. The sleek material fit into their skin and allowed them to control the nano-tech fibers in the suit as it fitted towards their unique bodies with barely a thought.

It was go time, if Harry could manipulate these two forces against each other, it would make his job a lot easier. They would weaken each other and Harry's allies could move in for the kill.

* * *

><p>Harry had what would be considered a suicide mission if it was anyone but Harry Evans. For him it was business as usual. It was a stroke of luck that he discovered the Shi'ar Mothership.<p>

"If I can expose the partnership between Ronan and D'Ken, then the fireworks should be immense," Harry commented to Carol over the communication link. "Anything on your end?"

"The Kree Armada hasn't returned in larger numbers, if that's what you're wondering," Carol commented to him. "But it could be just the calm before the storm."

"Unsettling," Harry commented underneath his breath. It was unsettling with how quiet the ship was.

Harry thought that he might have run into a guard or two by now. However he had not ran smack dab in the middle of anything. The Shi'ar main ship was a never ending pathway or so it seemed. There were several rooms, where Harry scanned.

Most of them were empty and some of them stored weapons. Harry did his best to disable all of the weapons on the other side of the doors.

"Okay, I've got this," Harry commented and he paused. He could hear a telepathic buzz in his hand.

That buzz got more prominent the more that he walked forward. Harry looked over his shoulder.

'_Help me.'_

There was no mistake about it. There was some kind of cry for help. The telepathic buzz in Harry's ear had caused him to stand up straight and tall. He listened for it again and wondered if it was a fluke or it would come through his ears again.

'_Help me.'_

This might have been a coincidence if it would have happened only twice. Harry could hear the telepathic call for help again and again. He quickened his footsteps and made his way down a winding set of stairs.

This had all of the makings of a prison wing. Harry prepared himself for anything, on the off chance it was a trap.

'_Doesn't seem like a trap though,' _Harry thought.

'_Because that wouldn't stop you from walking in there anyway,' _Jean thought knowingly.

'_Hey, there's nothing wrong with turning a trap around on your enemy,' _Harry thought as he thumped down the steps.

He reached the edge of a pair of prison cells and he saw something extremely interesting on the other side of the cell. His eyebrow rose up and he spotted something interesting.

"YOU!"

Harry turned around and saw Deathbird standing across from him. It was obvious that she was pissed off at him for some reason, although he wasn't sure why.

He readied himself for a fight.

* * *

><p><strong>To Be Continued On 111/2014.**

**And it's now time for the counter-invasion, as we kick this arc. And Harry's run into a slight snag. **

**D'Ken really is full of something, isn't he? It might not end well for him. In fact, it won't end well for him.**

**The Unholy Trinity plot had to be put on hold on account for protecting the world. **


	16. Blood Feud

**Chapter Sixteen: Blood Feud.**

Harry's instincts kicked up when he heard someone stalking behind him. Deathbird attacked him with reckless abandon. He recognized her name and face from the SWORD files. He briefed himself on them when he prepared to deal with this alien invasion. Her razor sharp claws nearly slammed into him.

He dodged her attack and jumped high into the air. He sent a blast of energy into her face which doubled her over. He needed to subdue her immediately because she was insane and posed a danger to himself and anyone else who got in her way.

"You won't do this, Kryptonian!" Deathbird srhieked. She recognized that expression, that demeanor, and she wouldn't go down to that wretched bloodline again. Her brother bowed before the tyrant as well, but it wasn't done in a willing manner.

"I don't even know what you're talking about, but you do need to cool down!" Harry yelled.

A crack whip like sound sent Deathbird flying head over heels. Harry wasn't going to hold back against her, well perhaps hold back a bit more than he would against a male who tried to kill him. She landed on the ground with an extremely obvious thud. The crack continued to echo when she hit the ground hard. Harry hoped that the painful shock would have caused her to get knocked back to her senses.

She tried to struggle to her knees. A set of cords enveloped around her and held her into place.

"If you excuse me, I'm on a very tight time table with this alien invasion going on," Harry said, leaning down and cupping her chin. He forced her to look right into his eyes. "So, why don't you tell me what's going on so I can hash it out?"

Deathbird violently shook her head.

"My brother has made a deal that's going to get us all killed!" Deathbird shouted at the top of her lungs.

Harry smiled, finally he was getting somewhere. At least he thought that he was getting somewhere. His green eyes peered down and stared at Deathbird, smiling wildly at her.

"What kind of deal?" Harry asked her. "He joined forces with the Kree."

"Those rejects, he thinks that he's going to be delivered the Phoenix Force because he made a deal with Ronan," Deathbird spat. She was tied up and had nowhere to go on her knees. That actually was a fairly attractive look for her, if Harry had to say so himself. Then again he was biased against such things.

"So, you say," Harry muttered underneath his breath. He wondered if he could angle this one properly to be in his favor. "D'Ken intends to destroy the Earth to get what he wants, and after he gets it, not that he will, he will destroy it anyway."

"Very perceptive, my brother's self-destructive behavior increases by each passing day, but given who he made a deal to get back to the throne with, I'm unsurprised," Deathbird said, folding her arms over her chest. It was almost like she dared Harry to contradict her words when she spoke.

"You hate your brother's actions, but yet you stand beside him," Harry said. He paused and added. "Or maybe behind him so you can fit the proper knife into his back when the time is right."

Deathbird didn't answer. Harry didn't need her to answer. He made sure that she was secure. Leaving someone like that untied and unchecked just was a recipe for disaster that Harry didn't even want to deal with at the moment. His green eyes fixated at the matter at hand.

"How are you?" Harry asked to the trio of Jean, Kara, and Claire.

"We're getting in position, we're going to cut off the Kree Armada, and hopefully drive it back this time," Jean said. She knew that last time the Phoenix coming out scared the Kree off.

She wouldn't be arrogant enough to think that worked a second time. She prepared for another way.

"D'Ken and Ronan have made a deal behind the backs of their respective races, so I'm going to try and rig something up," Harry said.

If he could turn the Kree and the Shi'ar on each other, it would make his life so much easier. Harry couldn't even begin to describe how easy that would be if he would be able to do something like that.

"Right, and we'll see what we can do on our end," Kara commented. She stuck close by Claire and Jean, they were more experienced in dealing with these type of situations. Although Kara was starting to be a natural at it, so it wasn't like she was lost.

"Just be careful there, and remember when you work together, there's no one who can take you down," Harry said.

Strength in numbers was a lesson that Harry learned a long time ago. That being said, it was time to disrupt some shit, somehow. And if nothing else, Harry Evans could stir some really good shit. He adjusted one of the knobs on the equipment and it flashed to life.

Harry turned around, he would be able to scan for any incriminating information. In the meantime, there was something else that he had to take care of. After another quick check to ensure that Deathbird was on the ground and out of the picture, Harry stepped forward towards the cell.

"You'll never be able to get through that cell!" Deathbird warned him. "It is configured where only it can be broken by…."

There was a grinding sound that caused Deathbird's mouth to hang open in absolute surprise.

"You were saying?" Harry asked.

Deathbird's words got caught up in her throat when the cell broke open. Just like as usual, Harry managed to open up the cell.

"Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about you."

Harry slowly turned his attention to the two occupants inside the cell. This should prove to be an interesting encounter.

X-X-X

"We're in the midst of an alien invasion, and it's not even Tuesday!" the loud booming voice of J. Jonah Jameson shouted for the entire world to hear. And that wasn't figurative because Jameson's voice carried far and wide. "These alien invaders are after the Phoenix and they threaten to blow up the Earth. What do they intend to do to get it? What does Earth intend to do? The government hasn't proven that they have been able to pull the stick out of their ass and do something productive. Hopefully they put as much work into busting these aliens as they do busting the Hulk!"

Gwen Stacy was dressed in a red and white costume that stretched over her body. Over the top of it was armor that fit nicely. It allowed her a nice combination of movement and protection which was a good bonus. Gwen skidded to the ground at a stop and listened to Jameson. It was really hard not to listen to him.

'_Could it be that I'm actually agreeing with him?' _Gwen thought and she shook her head. The very thought that she would be agreeing with J. Jonah Loudmouth was absurd to the highest degree, period, no question about it.

"But, you have to wonder what role if anything that Spider-Girl has to do with this. Crime has only gone up since that menace put on a pair of tights."

'_And there goes my goodwill for the jolly jackass,' _Gwen thought with an exasperated sigh. She swung down from where she was and slowly surveyed the situation around her.

She didn't like how this was really quiet. There were a bunch of people who shuttled around doing their daily activities. Despite the fact that there was an alien invasion going on, it seemed like many of them weren't going to ignore the fact that they had ever day lives to live.

Gwen's spider sense kicked up. It turned out she didn't need her spider sense to hear the object that whizzed above her head.

"Um, Harry," Gwen said, when she used the visual display to feed him information. "Are you picking up any of this right here?"

Harry answered her. "Yes, Gwen, I'm giving you what information I have. But wait until it lands until you try to hack into it."

Gwen intended to do that. She didn't want to trigger anything. She was jumping head long into uncertain and insane territory as it was.

"Okay, right, I got it," Gwen said and she looked at. Several military vehicles drove in and it wasn't SHIELD. She didn't know where SHIELD was at this point but there were several craft sightings.

And SHIELD did serve the world and not just New York City. So they would have to be in many places at once, at least that's what Gwen figured. At least that's what Gwen assumed, but one knew about how assumptions ran wild if you allowed them to.

Gwen could see the craft put a force field around it. The attacks from the military aircraft just bounced off the vehicle. There was no penetration, not even close to it. The blasts bounced off of it.

"They're just opening a Pandora's box trying to blast that thing out of the….oh my god!" Gwen yelled.

That thing blasted and it blasted back harder. It sent a wave of energy at the ships and incinerated them on the spot.

Gwen couldn't believe it. The screams of the people who got burned a crisp along with the screams of the people in her ears was not something that she could detach herself from.

"Don't approach it under any means," Gwen muttered to herself. She wished it would land, but she had to act quickly.

It could destroy the entire city. Reduce it to a pile of disgusting, twisted ash. That was something that Gwen feared above all else. She played the waiting game for this one.

"Stark is figuring out a way to negate these things, but it's pretty slow going," Carol said, showing up.

Carol stepped in front of Gwen to get a better look at this object. This in turn allowed Gwen to get a nice and long look at her ass. The blonde cleared her throat.

"At least the people had the sense to clear out of here where the clearing was good," Gwen said, the first time ever that something went right. She couldn't really believe her fortune. The fact was that now she grinned from ear to ear. Her amusement danced through her eyes.

"Yes, that's a good idea, but we still got to worry about anyone getting any bright ideas to take that thing down," Carol said with a pained and lengthy sigh.

Gwen frowned. She saw first-hand with an eye witness account what happened the last time someone had a bright idea to take one of those things down. It caused Gwen's stomach to churn in place. She folded her hands and bit down on her tongue, waiting for the next movement.

"You know, I'm not too pleased with Earth's lack of obedience," D'Ken announced for the world to hear. "You don't have that much time left, but I was hoping that you would all see the light. The Phoenix should be in my hands. Don't delay because I will not be pleased if you do. I will not be pleased if I'm given a go around. Do not test my patience because it is far from infinite. GIVE ME THE BIRD!"

Gwen gritted her teeth. She would have liked to give him a bird alright but it wouldn't be the Phoenix. She took a few moments to check her temper.

As much as Carol would have liked to punch D'Ken's teeth down his throat, they had far more pressing matters.

Gwen noticed these far more pressing matters as well. Her eyes followed the progress of the drone that landed on the ground. The blonde bit down firmly on her lip and prepared to work her magic.

"So do you think that you can hack it?" Carol asked and Gwen slowly turned over her shoulder, giving Carol one of those smoldering glares. That caused Carol to back off in surprise.

"I think that I can hack it," Gwen said.

The alien language was complex, the translation guide allowed Gwen to figure out the make of the bomb.

She could hear a portal opening up, but now wasn't the time for her to turn around.

"I've got your back!" Carol yelled, turning around to engage them. She was in there, jumping at the call in seconds.

Gwen was glad that she had someone like to having her back. Not that she couldn't handle herself. She had to decipher this and hack her way into it. Biting down on her tongue, Gwen nearly had it.

The pod was disabled and failed. It didn't vaporize the city. Life was good for Gwen.

Yet it wasn't over yet. The insanity had just began and continued to reach a new alarming fever pitch.

X-X-X

The insanity wasn't over and it was just beginning. That fact was hammered home by this incoming transmission that Kara just happened to pick up on.

"The ship is heading on its way to the Fortress."

"The ship is on approach to the Fortress!" Kara called to Claire.

Harry hooked them up with the Kree radio transmission and it was working like a charm. Kara zoomed through the air faster than a speeding bullet. She could feel the wind blowing through her hair when she approached the ship. The blonde clenched her hands together when she got closer and closer. Her heart sped up quicker when she continued to fly. The wind in her hair felt really amazing when she rapidly approached her target.

"Almost there!" Kara called over her shoulder.

"The Fortress is under complete lockdown, so they shouldn't even breech it," Lara suggested. There was a 'but' lingering in the air. She continued to do so. "But I'm more concerned about the damage that they could cause on their way to the Fortress."

"You and I both, Mother," Claire agreed and she took herself to meet the Kree ships. Jean stood tall and ready next to them and prepared to fight.

Things in Space had grown quite, at least on the Kree's end. The Shi'ar was another matter entirely however. Harry prepared to deal them a crushing blow and might have already done so at this point.

"D'Ken is still giving his grand proclamation about the Phoenix," Lara said, she was radioed into both Shi'ar and Kree frequencies. The program which Harry used worked like a charm and soon once they had the right transmission, the Fortress would be able to broadcast it to cripple the trust of both sides.

"So, is there a chance that the Shi'ar and the Kree will decide to work together for the common good?" Claire asked.

Kara scoffed at her cousin's statement. "The Kree and the Skrull have more of a chance of working together. Lobo has more of a chance of becoming a cultured gentleman with a posh accent."

"So, in other words, less than zero," Jean said dryly, and she ripped the first ship in half. She trapped the Kree soldiers in a telekinetic bubble.

"Remember, Harry would like to collect as much technology as possible," Claire said.

Kara raised her eyebrow. "Why?"

"Because he likes taking the spoils of war from his enemies, and he's a bit of a klepto," Jean admitted. "Especially with women."

Kree really expended a lot of resources to get one little Fortress. They were obsessed in acquiring it but to be fair, it had the knowledge of twenty eight galaxies in it.

'_Their Supreme Intelligence must not be too Supreme if he desires the knowledge of the Fortress,' _Claire commented to herself. There was no use in pretending that they weren't her.

Claire punched one of the ships, causing it to crush like a tin can. Kara pried it open and threw the Kree soldiers down on the ground.

"So, wouldn't the Kree grow stronger under the yellow sun like you do?" Jean asked.

Claire frowned and so did Kara. That was a good question to be honest and if that was true, the longer the Kree was here, the more potential havoc they could cause.

Lara was there to relieve their concerns at least a little bit. "I'll confirm that the Kree has mutated and evolved that any relief they would get from the yellow sun would be minimal. They're only just barely Kryptonian and that's not even counting any experiences they may have committed upon themselves when they got exiled from the planet."

That relieved their spirits somewhat. The only other main problem was that the Kree was in fact here and they packed in some really big guns. The guns were so big that they blasted their enemies heavily.

"We need to…"

Kara never finished her sentence. She could see a blast down things. The blonde turned her eyes down and saw Lily Evans down on the ground. She was dressed in what appeared to be a tight white suit that formed around her curves. Kara found herself checking out her mate's mother too long to be healthy.

"And we find out that this thing can really pack a punch on alien war ships," Lily said, after blowing a hole through the ship. The Kree made their way down onto the ground.

Lily smiled, casually waving her hand. The ice on the ground rose up and encased them hard. Another wave of her hand would have caused what little oxygen they had to fade out of the picture. That wasn't what Lily had in mind however, no far from it.

"I can hurt you or I can help you, the choice is really yours," Lily said and she turned to Jean.

Jean smiled and walked over. The thought patterns of the Kree trapped in the ice were extremely frantic.

"They're after the Fortress and they don't care if every single person on Earth dies for them to get their revenge and Ronan wants both Claire and Kara," Jean said and the look in her eye told them all that they needed to know. She wasn't going to allow this to happen, at least if she could help it. "And they've planted bombs in major population centers."

'_I know, I disabled one, and now SWORD and SHIELD are spreading out to disable the others because Harry managed to hack into the Shi'ar computers, which had a backdoor to the main Kree system on the mother ship,' _Gwen thought. She had been linked in for easy communication.

"This one doesn't know where Ronan is, does he?" Lily asked and Jean shook her head.

"He's moving around from ship to ship, or he would be if he's smart, he might not even be with the invasion fleet," Claire suggested.

This prompted a very un-lady like snort from Kara. "Please, Ronan isn't that smart. He's really not that smart."

The intelligence or lack there of regarding the Grand Accuser was something that they could debate at another time. The group wondered what Harry had up his sleeve.

"SWORD is coming up to round these guys up, and you two girls can get what's salvageable into the Fortress, can't you?" Lily asked.

"Anything to indulge Harry's little collection habit," Claire said with a smile. "We have to move quickly so….."

Kara disappeared and reappeared. "Catalogued and put away as well."

"You could slow down sometimes," Claire said and Kara glared at her. "I know, no time."

Another fleet popped up right over the pole. There were numerous groans from the party on the ground when they braced themselves for another attack.

"Those bastards can't take a hint," Lily said through gritted teeth.

The Invasion continued to kick up. Security around the Fortress was doubled even though it was pretty secure to begin with. They couldn't afford it to fall into enemy hands.

X-X-X

Spider-Girl was doing whatever a Spider-Girl did. And what a Spider-Girl did today was making sure to coordinate the efforts on the ground when Harry gave her the information. She ran into miniature packs of resistance down there in the form of some Shi'ar soldiers.

"They haven't figured out what their leaders are working together, are they?" Gwen asked, taking a deep breath. Her chest inhaled and exhaled for a second when she enjoyed a fleeting moment of downtime. She knew without a shadow of a doubt that those moments of downtime because they would end so.

Cherish the moments, cherish them while you can and cherish them when you could still take a breath.

"I think right now they're just assuming that they're two separate invasion forces that happened to hit Earth at the same time but for different reasons," Lily said. "And the grid is completely online…..about eight hours too late."

"You heard Harry, these things can't be rushed," Carol cut in and they managed to find their way to the West Coast where another bomb had been sent. She had been equipped with a bracelet that Harry and Lily made that allowed them to flash from point to point.

It wasn't really magic, it was based on a piece of alien technology that they could. It was a mini-teleportation device where all you needed was to pump in the coordinates and they would be there.

"Bomb, bomb," Gwen said and she hacked into it. She was disappointed that her little iron toy didn't get as much of a workout as she thought. "How are things going in the Arctic?"

"Kree sent two fleets after the Fortress, and we've got a lot more guests for the facility, although the Guardians can sort them out," Lily informed them with a sigh.

"Yeah, once they drag themselves away from the latest war of the rainbow, they can," Carol confirmed and she smacked a large droid down.

"My patience is not infinite and it has nearly run out, surrender the Phoenix Force and I will make your end a little less painful!" D'Ken crowed.

"Oh a less painful end, does that mean you're shut up?" Gwen asked bitingly. She could hear more communications in her ear and both the Shi'ar and the Kree wondering why the other was here.

"Cease fire on the Shi'ar, do not forget our objective," Ronan warned in a crisp voice. "Once the Fortress has been captured, then we can wipe them out, along with the humans."

"Please tell me the Shi'ar heard that," Lily said. There was no further attempt to take the Fortress.

That proved one thing for her and that was the Kree spread themselves way too thing.

"I've got into their systems and am sending orders for them to go to other locations," Harry said, he arranged for the Shi'ar and the Kree to run into each other. They would be moments away from having a real meeting of the minds.

Gwen smiled, Harry could be fairly devious. Another bomb was done and she was sure that the Kree would be foaming at the mouth. She couldn't say that she felt too sorry about their frustrations though. They did bring it upon themselves thinking that Earth was ripe for the taking and ripe for the invasion.

"Okay, we got to go to the next one, there's one more in the country, in Washington," Carol said with a frown. "SHIELD will have to deal with them around the world."

"As long as they follow my orders and direction, they really should have no problem, should they?" Harry asked.

There was a potential question of whether or not SHIELD could follow Harry's orders to the letter. That would have to wait for the moment.

"So far nothing, but we have gotten some potential information on where Ronan is," Lily reported in.

Carol smiled. Hope sprung pretty eternal to be honest there. Ronan was a dangerous threat and D'Ken was. The Capitol was being cleared out and that allowed Carol and Gwen to touch down and do what needed to be done.

"Okay, are you ready?" Carol asked.

Gwen waved her hands and went to work.

"Destroy her!"

Gwen didn't even need to turn around to realize that wasn't good. She could see Carol go off to attack her and the other Avengers were also close by.

Chaos and panic gripped the world. The only reason why it didn't hit up to full blown catastrophe was that there were heroes around the world. That caused hope to spring eternal all around the world.

The Kree and the Shi'ar met halfway, the Avengers in the middle. Gwen felt nervous, if they hit the bomb, that could spell the end.

Every single politician in Washington could disappear off of the face of the Earth. Which to be honest ,some people might cheer that fact. The loss of many innocent human lives on the other hand, not so much.

Gwen worked her way around the bomb. She was shoved in what was a high level pressure cooker. Time ticked on when she worked her way over the bomb. Each second felt like an eternity. It felt like it was several minutes.

"It's not responding," Gwen said to Harry, gritting her teeth. "And it's humming, that's not good!"

"No it isn't, calm down, and listen to me, I have an idea," Harry said. "Cover the bomb in your webbing, make sure each inch of it is covered."

"Okay, but I don't know how much good it's going to do me," Gwen said, and she saw the Hulk flying over the top of her head. She ignored the battle and focused on what Harry was telling her.

"Gently lift the bomb and hurl it through that vortex that's opening up above your head!" Harry said.

Gwen saw the vortex and she hurled a Kree Bomb at a Shi'ar ship, knowing full well how it would be interpreted. She reminded herself that Harry could be devious and she hated to be on his bad side. She was glad to always be on his good side.

There was a really big bang as the vortex got sealed and the Shi'ar soldiers looked up at this act of Kree aggression. There would be severe ramifications for this one.

Lily popped up instantly.

"Figured you'd show up," Carol said to her.

"In the neighborhood, thought I'd swing by," Lily told her, arming a cannon and blasting it hard as possible.

It made a direct hit on the armored guards.

X-X-X

Harry Potter liberated the two prisoners from the cell. They were extremely weak but Harry patched them up in no time flat and got them something to eat after they woke up. They could really use a nice bath, but it would have to wait.

The first woman had long dark hair that looked more ragged and messy than Harry's did on his worst day. She wore a tattered grey garment that looked to be the clothes of commoners. Despite her unkempt appearance, there was no denying that this woman was one of regal upbringing and Harry appreciated that.

"Thank you for rescuing us, I don't really know what happened," the woman commented, ignoring the throbbing that went through the back of her head. Her mind completely was dazed and not to mention it was extremely confused to be honest.

"I have a pretty good idea what happened, D'Ken captured and imprisoned both of you," Harry said.

"I don't understand how he did that," she said, shaking her head. "He had been exiled when he nearly killed a quarter of our race. He was sent to die, but I changed his sentence at the last minute."

It was obvious that this woman was regretting not pulling the trigger to execute her brother when she had the chance. She hoped, perhaps to the point of foolish optimism, that she could rehabilitate him. There was no real chance of rehabilitation for someone who was as bent as an old coat hanger like this man was.

Harry would take more drastic action and his end would be ironic for obvious reasons.

"Well, it's a lesson that you should know Miss…" Harry said, allowing the statement to hang. He knew who she was or had a pretty good idea who she was at any rate. He wanted to hear it from the horse's mouth.

"Lilandra," she commented in a light voice. She almost swallowed a lump in her throat and she sighed prominently. "I'm the Empress of the Shi'ar or at least I was. D'Ken staged a coup and imprisoned me. I wasn't the only political prisoner, although he kept me alive for some reason."

"To show that he has mercy or to taunt you, he thinks of you as weak," Harry said gently to her. "Even though you're not because most would have broken because of this imprisonment."

The second person looked up at him. She was sitting in the shadows until now. The bruises on her face indicated that she was not brought her because of her will and she must have escaped several times.

Her hair framed her face, reaching down her shoulders. Blue eyes shined brightly and despite the bruises on her face, it was gorgeous. She wore a ragged black top along with a black pair of pants that had been ripped and torn. There might have been some kind of underarmor as well but it had long since been left away. Her feet were uncovered as well and gorgeous despite being covered with grime.

Her eyes fixated on Harry's. This wasn't something that Harry felt strange. A lot of women locked onto his eyes. That wasn't the part that he was curious about her doing. Her eyes kept traveling all over his face and there was a deep frown that went over her face.

"You have her eyes," the young woman whispered, and she rose to her feet. She was still really weak from being imprisoned. Why wouldn't she be? Her knees buckled and this young man reached out to touch her.

She didn't rip his arms off for daring to touch her because she knew exactly what was going on.

"You are him," she whispered and a wide smile spread over her face. Her excitement increased and she smirked. "You are him, I can't believe it, it worked, it really worked."

Her arms wrapped around him and she struggled to stand upright. She managed to do it just barely. The flickering smile continued to grow on her face. Her breath increased when she looked at him.

Harry could tell that she was excited. As excited as she was, Harry was just a tiny bit confused. He looked down into her eyes with a sweeping smile on his face. He had a theory of what was going on but he wanted to verify it. "That's nice you think that I'm him, but who are you?"

"Faora, Faora Dru-Zod, the Shi'ar captured me when I fled the planet before they could exile me to the Phantom Zone, she found the crystal, just as planned," Faora said and she shook her head. "It would only have meant for one but…"

Faora nearly slid down. She stood up proudly. She was fighting the impulse to be weak. It was hard to fight it. Her jaw became set and she breathed even more heavily now than ever before.

'_Faora Dru-Zod, well that's interesting,' _Kara suggested.

There was nothing else that could be said about that. Harry's program finished downloading after the firewalls had been dismantled.

It was time to stir things up.

**To Be Continued On 11/3/2014.**

**Well should have known that was inevitable. **

**Harry is now going to turn the Kree and the Shi'ar against each other, which is glorious. **

**The Kree and the Skrull joining in in any way whatsoever is hilarious for a multitude of reason. Not as much as Lobo becoming a proper gentleman with a monocle who drinks tea. **


	17. Misdirection

**Chapter Seventeen: Misdirection.**

* * *

><p>D'Ken waited in his throne room on the mother ship, with Gladiator by his side. He waited impatiently for the Phoenix to be delivered to him. So far the Kree had not held up their end of the bargain. That pissed the Emperor off something fierce. His eyes glared with madness while his hand tightened around the side of the chair.<p>

The guard rushed his way forward. D'Ken spotted his frantic motions. He skidded forward at the feet of the Emperor. Calmly, Gladiator bent down and grabbed the guard by the scruff of his neck, pushing him up to his feet.

"Speak clearly and concisely to your emperor!" Gladiator bellowed loudly. In response the guard wobbled on his knees. He very nearly dropped to the ground but somehow he managed to hold himself to his feet.

"There has been an incoming transmission coming in from Ronan," he said breathlessly. D'Ken eyed his guard. "But you better see it for yourself because you're not going to believe it. Sir, you're really not…"

He placed a hand up. That caused the man to be silent without words. He slowly turned to Gladiator.

"Make sure it's online," D'Ken said.

He had not heard from his sister in a long time which concerned him greatly. He didn't really care for his sister at all. She was just the type of person that you wanted to know where she was at all times no matter what. His gaze burned forward as Ronan's face.

"We grow closer to capturing the last children of Krypton, my commander, all we need to do is secure their outpost."

Ronan scoffed angrily. "If you need to secure their outpost still then you haven't come close at all to doing so."

The lights on the console blinked to life and Ronan gave a sneer as he waited.

"What are your orders regarding the Shi'ar, they are in our airspace?" the soldier asked.

"Never mind them," Ronan said. His voice sounded rather short and fairly irritable. "As long as they don't take a direct hit, then do nothing. That's my final word on this."

"Is it?" one of them asked him.

"Yes, did I stutter or perhaps make myself unclear in any way?" Ronan asked nastily. His man shook his head in response. "Attack them once we get the Kryptonians and annihilate them. They will have served their usefulness at that moment."

D'Ken's teeth gritted. He knew that he had been duped at that second. His eyes flashed.

"Once I have the Phoenix, the Kree will know the meaning of terror," D'Ken whispered hoarsely underneath his breath. "They will know torment beyond all belief. Gladiator, perhaps the…"

D'Ken's sentence never was completely finished. Another crackle came to life and the Emperor got to his feet.

"It's coming in on all frequencies, my lord," a whispered voice said.

D'Ken wondered what was happening now and how this situation can get even worse. The image of D'Ken and Ronan meeting face to face was broadcasted for both of their respective fleets.

"Make sure that you have the Phoenix, and we will do what we need to ensure the Kryptonian outpost gets into your hands," D'Ken said to him.

"You do realize that no one can know about this at all," Ronan whispered. The harshness that continued to drip from his voice was horrifying.

There was a moment where D'Ken was extremely calm. The fact that someone was bent and mad as D'Ken came across as so calm almost could terrify people to a new and insane degree. The horror that flickered through his eyes etched pure and utter madness in his mind.

"I see the light," he whispered. He was slowly rocking back and forth, teetering at the edge of madness and beyond. "Attack the Kree before they have a chance to attack us."

"Emperor, don't you think that you're being a bit too….."

He snapped in a way that left absolutely no room left for argument. "I SAID TO ATTACK THE KREE!"

His voice grew extremely loud and harsh. It was to the point where anyone who had dared question him would suffer some kind of horrific consequences when they went up against him. His eyes glinted in abject fury as he spoke.

"I made myself clear, don't you dare defy my orders again, any of you," D'Ken said.

He ranted and raved. It just began to get far more horrifying with his lack of sense. He essentially lost all sense of sanity, not that someone of D'Ken's stature had much sanity to begin with. He twisted and turned into an absolute raving lunatic.

The grip that he held on the Shi'ar empire slipped. Suddenly the Kree attacked them full force.

They were not the only ones who were trying to save face in this mad situation.

"Blast them!" D'Ken yelled. "Blast them!"

* * *

><p>Gwen Stacy felt like she was ran ragged and not in a good way. She did have some good news in all of this madness. All of the bombs she had to dismantle had been fixed in a good way. The blonde's lips curled into a momentary smile and she really could feel good about herself<p>

She wished that should could feel even better about herself than she was now.

"It's not over yet, is it?"

Gwen asked this question of the one and only Sorcerer Supreme. He had turned the Shi'ar mothership into his own personal playground. What was more interesting was that it was done underneath the nose of the Emperor himself. The blonde crouched on a gargoyle and the Kree war ships were less prominent.

"We're actually closer to it being done then you might think," Harry told her.

Gwen raised her eyebrow in surprise. This was news to her. "Really?"

"The Kree and Shi'ar are firing on each other," Harry said with a smile on his face. "And the grid is up so they won't hit the Earth in the process. And they're violating intergalactic treaty."

"Something that D'Ken and Ronan are both too arrogant to assume applies to them," Lara chimed in.

That might have been music to all of their ears. The loud whirling of Iron Man taking out a Shi'ar war ship could be heard above her head. Gwen's spider sense didn't get trigger just yet but she was on a hair trigger for obvious reasons.

The girl's nerves grew something increasingly more prominent the more that she waited. The blonde heard something occur above her head and it made its way closer down to Earth. It was so close that she thought that it would be crashing in a matter of moments.

"And furthermore, this menace…"

Jameson's latest rant about Spider-Girl had to be preempted. The ship flew hard into the side the jumbotron and sent sparks flying everywhere.

Gwen thought that this was one of those good news and bad news type situations. The good news was that Jameson's rant had been preempted and how. The bad news was that the Jumbotron can crashing down on the citizens of New York. She had to act quickly to prevent that from happening.

The blonde heroine zipped and held the jumbotron up, preventing it from crushing everyone. This action took little effort. She welded the iron bars of the Tron together.

The breath slipped out of her body and she found it really difficult to breath. Other than the difficulty she found breathing, she felt extremely good and ready to go. More ready than she thought that she would be at any rate.

"The invasion is over, I can't believe it!"

There were some cheers down on the ground. The Earth's immediate danger was wrapping up at the very least. There would be more invasions but the Shi'ar and the Kree were more interested in dealing with each other.

"So, let me get this straight," Gwen said slowly. Her voice sounded fairly exasperated when she talked to Harry over the communication network. "You thought the best way to end this invasion was to troll both sides."

"I'm going to say that it worked pretty well, wouldn't you think?" Harry asked Gwen. He could almost hear Gwen lift her hand to the top of her head and face palm herself something fierce.

"I would have to agree that it worked, yes," Gwen commented, biting down on her tongue. "But don't you think that…"

"Gwen it worked really well, that's all that I think matters right now," Harry told her in an extremely firm voice.

Gwen wasn't going to argue about that. She actually had a chance to think which was a surprise given the normal pounding of one J. Jonah Jameson in her ear. It not only gave her a splitting headache but it made her extremely annoyed at everything that she had to deal with.

"So, there's no one down there!" Gwen called to Carol who went down to look.

Carol responded by poking her head out from underneath the debris. "No, there's no one down there at all."

Gwen wasn't going to lie, she felt relief course through her body and that wasn't really a bad thing to be honest.

"Thought for a moment that we'd get screwed and have someone hurt," Gwen said.

Carol paused and it was obvious at this moment she was getting word of some sort from SWORD.

The Kree and the Shi'ar engaged themselves into some kind of battle. Not only did they engage themselves in some kind of battle but both of those sides looked to be playing for keeps. Carol frowned when she thought about that.

"Insanity," she muttered. That was what it was in her humble mind. It was insanity. Pure and utter insanity, with no sense of sanity involved.

"Is that anything new?" Gwen asked Carol. In response, the blonde's lips curled into a frustrated grimace when she looked at the other, younger blonde. "That's really what I thought, that's nothing new at all."

That being said, she wondered what insanity Harry was going to play yet to come. If she knew her boyfriend, he had some real insanity in store. Gwen couldn't say that she was too upset about that. In fact she was really excited about that to the point where she could hardly sit down.

"Just watch the show," Harry said and the images appeared.

Gwen thought that her boyfriend had an excellent point. What he was about to show them was going to some pure magic.

* * *

><p>Ronan's nostrils flared in pure rage. He tried not to lose his mind. It wasn't working. The grand accuser was about ready to lose his mind. His eyes stared at the Shi'ar and their foul emperor right through the edge of the screen.<p>

"I should have known better than to trust the Shi'ar," Ronan snarled.

"You don't think that I'm any happier about this than you are?" D'Ken asked and his eyes bulged out. They were an extremely scary sight when they glowed like they did. "I'm not happy about this."

"You're never happy about anything," Ronan whispered. He decided to edge closer to grab the throat. "You've ruined this, you've ruined it for all. This was your ship, but I swear to everyone that will listen if I'm going down, I'm taking you along with me!"

"You're the one who is being taken down, Accusor!"

The Emperor of the Shi'ar and the Grand Accuser of the Kree descended into the bickering of school children. It might have been really funny if it wasn't for the simple fact that it was completely and utterly sad. One could see where someone's amusement would fade due to that though.

"Oh this is really rich, isn't it?" Harry asked. Amusement twinkled through his eyes when he drew closer. "Just to let you boys know something. I didn't take too kindly to you invading my planet. Especially given that I've grown rather fond of it. Both of you have been warned. And for the record, I now have the rightful Empress of the Shi'ar under my protection. And Ronan…..you genetic misfit…"

Harry looked extremely amused even those these two men didn't.

"You thought that you had a chance," Harry said. He tutted in the most obvious way possible when he shook his head. "You know, while the two of you were bickering like little schoolyard bitches, I was taking a good look at your ship. Studying it to see how it worked. You learn some interesting things when you study a person's ship. And one of those things is that you know how it works. You know the strengths in the system. And more importantly you learn the flaws in the system. And you learn that a ship like yours they have many flaws. Many of them that can be easily exploited if you know exactly what to do and I'll admit it right now, I know exactly what to do."

Harry's eyes twinkled in barely contained amusement. He kept drumming his fingers across the drive of the ship.

"But, I shouldn't monologue, because no one likes a person who monologues about how their plan is going to succeed," Harry said. He smiled and allowed his words to fully sink in. "I'll be keeping the spoils of war from both sides. Hope you enjoy the Phantom Zone. I don't think either of you are going to survive the experience."

Harry clicked something and the screens where D'Ken and Ronan respectfully stood broke open. A swirling vortex opened and both of them got sucked in.

"No, I won't….it's mine!" Ronan yelled.

"Sorry, Ronan, you've lost…..but I'm sure you won't be around long enough to care," Harry said. "There are a lot of prisoners in the Phantom Zone that know who you are, and want to say hello. D'Ken as well. Hope you boys have fun in there. Perhaps you can kill each other for trying to stab the other in the back."

There was a loud crash and the two offending parties disappeared into a flash of light. They were gone, disappeared without a trace into the Phantom Zone.

"I'll give you one choice, and I hope you make it count," Harry said, smirking deeply. "Flee because you have no choice otherwise."

They decided to take Harry up on that offer. One could argue that it would be insane for them not to do so.

The Shi'ar and Kree were both gone in a flash of light. Harry looked over towards what was left over. Their leaders had both been removed.

"You did it, didn't you?" Carol asked him.

"Earth didn't have that much damage," Harry said. He stepped around her question with a grin. There was a moment where he smiled and his smile increased even wider. "So, yes, I would have to say that I did it."

"The real question is whether or not they'll be back."

Harry mulled that question over in his mind. He would be foolish to deny that the Kree and the Shi'ar wouldn't be back.

"You know, we're just going to keep hitting them harder to make sure that they got the hint," Harry commented.

He looked over the remaining ships that had been left over from the invasion. Harry thought that he really made out in this invasion pretty well, in more ways than one.

"Make sure she gets escorted back to the Fortress, she's been pretty banged up," Harry said.

"Is that the reason why you gave D'Ken the Phantom Zone?" Claire asked. Harry raised his eyebrow.

The Phantom Zone was worse than a death sentence for people like D'Ken. Krypton wasn't the only planet that used the Zone for a dumping ground for their fugitives and things that they wanted to get out of the way. The Shi'ar and Kree indulged themselves in the Zone as well, utilizing it as a method to their madness and a method to get the worst of their criminals out of there way.

"Among other reasons," Harry said. His tone was calm and collected.

D'Ken surrounded by the horrific monsters he helped make was a delightful bit of karma that Harry couldn't help but be intrigued by. That monster being locked away for a long time was glorious as far as Harry was concerned.

* * *

><p>Lilandra thought that the obsession with the Phoenix Force had gone on long and far enough. That was just what her opinion was anyway. Her brother had been driven mad because of it and he paid the price. There were a lot of others that were driven completely around the bend by the amazing power that was the Phoenix Force.<p>

She wasn't driven mad by the power. Lilandra felt that she would lie however if she didn't stand in awe of it and in amazement of it. Her eyes flickered with warmth when she looked towards Harry and Jean.

She didn't really know what was more impressive. The Phoenix Force was extremely impressive in its own right. The young man who tamed the Phoenix Force was also equally impressive in his own right. Lilandra didn't know what to make of this.

"I take it that you've been driven speechless."

Harry's amused expression was one that caused Lilandra to snap back to reality a little bit. The woman's heart drummed anxiously about the area of her chest.

"Speechless is a good identifier, and yes I have," she told him. There was no question about this in her mind. She had been driven speechless. Numb struck would also be an ideal adjective. "A legend is one thing."

"She's real."

"My brother never had any chance with taming and controlling her," Lilandra said.

Jean's face twisted into an extremely sour expression. It was almost like she had been forced to swallow something extremely rancid and she had trouble speaking because of it. "I should hope not."

"I didn't think that he was your type anyway," Lilandra said. She would have been amused if the situation wasn't so serious. "And I apologize for all of the trouble that he caused."

In another life, Lilandra would have thought that sending her brother to the Phantom Zone might have been an extreme punishment. This time though she wasn't completely sure. She thought that the punishment more than fit the crime.

"I hope that you didn't think that I overstepped my bounds by what I did," Harry said.

Lilandra waved off that statement. "You did what you thought was necessary to protect your planet. You did what a true ruler would have done."

Her statement would have been finished but she couldn't manage it. Her tongue was tied and lost on the way out. She did finish it within the depths of her mind, however. _'Like I would have done if I had been a true ruler.'_

Lilandra frowned extremely deeply and shook her head. Perhaps she shouldn't have beaten herself up all that much. She just couldn't help herself. There were a lot of problems regarding what she wanted to accomplish that continued to dog her. There was whispers that she had been put on the throne because everyone was unfit.

"Given a further chance, I'm sure that you will excel being a ruler," Harry said. He decided that encouragement was best needed for her to succeed.

This word of encouragement might have been all that she needed to serve her people. Or it might have been all that she needed to set herself up for the road of failure. She wasn't sure what it would be honestly.

"I will do my best," Lilandra said. She sounded like she felt she had her work ahead of her. And she was right. "I can't say that I'm left with the best mess in the world to deal with. But I will fix it."

"Spoken like a true Queen," Harry said to her. "I left the fate of your sister in your hands."

"Yes, she fancied herself to go on the throne next," Lilandra said. "I won't make the same mistakes that I did with D'Ken. But I don't think that I should judge her on what he did either."

"Everyone deserves to be judged on their own merits,' Jean said.

The Empress walked forward. The same people who plotted against her now prepared to stand beside her. That was something that caused her to frown. She hoped that there would be a bit more loyalty.

Jean and Harry decided to leave her for her mission.

"I can't believe that this has happened," Jean said. Harry gave her a quizzical look. "Well, okay, I can believe that this happened. There isn't that much that I don't believe that can happen anymore, but still….."

Harry stopped her and grabbed her hand. Jean relaxed underneath his firm grip. Something about that made her feel better.

"Are we okay?"

"Yes, now that I'm with you," Jean said and they disappeared with a pop.

They arrived back to the Kansas Country side. They were back in a place where they would feel welcomed.

'_I got to love Smallville, I'm not going to lie,' _Jean said.

She would say that it was home but that wasn't necessarily true. It was true to an extent but more logically home was wherever Harry was to her. That was something that she couldn't deny no matter how hard that she tried.

"What are you thinking about?" Harry asked.

He could read her mind but somehow he thought that would take the fun out of everything.

Jean turned towards him and the grin could barely be seen upon her face. The redhead stared towards him with mirth dancing within her eyes.

"Come on, guess what I'm thinking about," Jean said. A bright smile crossed her face for a matter of moments.

Harry reached in and cupped her chin. He pulled her into a passionate kiss and her eyes widened. His tongue pushed deep into her mouth.

She smiled, she thought that he had a pretty good idea based on what he was doing to her.

"A good answer," Jean said, with a sultry smile on her face. She smiled at him. She decided to drag him off towards the back garden so they could continue that conversation.

* * *

><p>Claire completed some barn chores with Kara's help. She didn't know quite what it was but there was just something about the simplicity of doing chores that caused her to feel liberated. Perhaps it was that great feeling of nostalgia that just washed inside her. She didn't know but it did really make her smile.<p>

"You're in a pretty good mood today, aren't you?" Kara asked. She almost pulled a Harry, popping up next to Claire so fast. "And yes, I cleaned it out completely. I don't know how something that small can make such a mess. The real mess is the alien invasion."

Claire understood that. In the coming days, SHIELD and SWORD would have to clean up the chaotic situation around the city. The dark haired Kryptonian mentally put things together in the back of her head. This was all leading to what could be a huge mess. She was pretty sure about it.

Leaving such items lying around was a really bad thing.

"I don't think that we're going to have to worry about the Kree anymore."

Kara and Claire turned around. Claire was used to the entire sneaking up on her thing so she took it in stride. Kara on the other hand wasn't that used to the entire sneaking up on her thing. She placed her hands down at her side and scowled when she saw Harry turn up.

"Must you do that?" Kara asked her mate. She was glad to see him regardless of his sudden arrival.

"You'll get used to it," Claire said wisely. "So what's the word?"

"With D'Ken and Ronan out of the picture, we've got two alien races who are sorting out some real messes," Harry said. "The Shi'ar is not that big of a problem. There's still going to be a civil war but this time Lilandra is more prepared for it. The Kree on the other hand, they have their own problems. There are rumors of a rebellion against the Supreme Intelligence. He was the one that gave Ronan the go ahead to make a deal with the devil."

Kara raised her eyebrow. She couldn't say that she didn't see this one coming. She saw this one coming a mile away. There was a sense of "Now what?" with her.

"But, the universe is going to have many threats," Harry said.

Claire grinned and locked her arm around Harry's. "But I'm sure that you're going to find new and inventive ways to smack down any alien intruders."

"You know that just about as well as anyone else," Harry said.

Kara looked about ready to burst with excitement for something. The opinionated blonde struggled even in the best of times to hold her tongue back.

"Kara, you really want to know, don't you?"

Kara nearly lost it at Harry's answer. "Yes, Har-Zod, I really want to know…."

"What did you call him?" Claire asked. This sudden name threw here completely and utterly off guard.

Harry knew what Kara was talking about but funnily enough, it never came up in a casual conversation. Imagine something like that if you would, just imagine something like that.

"Faora told me when I was at the Fortress, but that's not the point," Kara said, side stepping the question with all of the tact of a well-practiced politician. "I've been hearing a lot of things about what's been happening you know. And I see how you seem to defer to him. So….."

"Since I was fifteen, are you happy?" Claire asked.

Kara blinked. That was more anti-climatic than she thought that it was. She thought that there would be more hemming and hawing than that.

"You know, you could have just told me this…"

Harry cut off her words with a passionate kiss. Kara found her brain hit total meltdown from this one action.

Claire smiled, that always worked like a charm to cut off hot tempered girls from the House of El. Kara's mind completely shut down. The kiss increased in passion and intensity each moment that Harry locked his lips around Kara.

Kara couldn't believe it. That tongue, that mouth, both of those things should be registered as the most deadly weapons possible. There was no one that she thought that they would be anything but that.

Harry pulled away from her. "Are you ready now?"

"I think that you should show me some of what you've been up to," Kara said. There was a bright smile on face and passion dancing about her eyes. "I've missed so much of my cousin's life after all."

Harry raised his eyebrow towards Kara. The blonde didn't even flinch or blink.

"You're a dirty little girl, you know that."

Harry smacked her hard on the ass and that prompted her to jump up. Harry's arm tightened around her and pulled her in close.

"I know that I'm a dirty little girl, why don't you teach me a lesson?" Kara asked.

Claire and Harry locked eyes.

"So what do you think?" Harry asked her.

"I think that she was asking for it," Claire answered.

Kara felt her nipples poke from the side of her shirt. She was going to get more up close and perusal with her cousin. They were going to redefine the term roll in the hay.

* * *

><p>Harry cleaned up and allow Claire and Kara to crash in Claire's old room in the barn. Not so much after he took a step out, did he receive a call.<p>

It couldn't have been another invasion.

"Hello, Carol," Harry said.

"Meeting in an hour, I'd really appreciate it if you were there because you were in the middle of everything," Carol informed him.

Harry smiled and answered her question. "For you, anything, believe me."

**To Be Continued on 11/6/2014.**

**Harry was fairly busy this chapter, both on and off screen as you can tell. **


	18. Times of Transition

**Chapter Eighteen: Times of Transition.**

* * *

><p>Harry was in that period where he thought that he might have some downtime. Some might take this as an opportunity to calm down and just relax. Harry was the complete opposite. He took it as an opportunity to brace himself for the next battle at hand. And there was one battle that he knew as coming. He could feel it.<p>

"One of these days, I swear that you're going to lose your mind," Jean suggested to him.

Harry smiled towards her. "Just one of these days?"

"Well you know what I mean," Jean commented. Her arms swung by her waist when she walked. "It seems like you've been running all over the world because of this Sorcerer Supreme mess."

It's more than this Sorcerer Supreme mess as you so eloquently put it," Harry said. This caused Jean to calmly shrug and look at him. "I mean, just stop and think about it. Have you ever known of a time where more people thought that it would be a good time to invade Earth?"

"After what happened to D'Ken and the Kree, you would think that they would learn their lesson," Jean said to him. She could almost hear the Phoenix giving a labored sigh deep within her subconscious at her naivety. "I mean seriously, do you really think…"

"I wish I could say that they wouldn't, but I know better," Harry said. She smiled when the two of them arrived outside of the SWORD base. "And I let Kara into the secret of my relationship with Claire."

"And knowing you, you did it in the most anti-climatic way possible," Jean told him. Harry's look told her pretty much everything that she neeed to know. "And you wonder why you wouldn't have told her in the first place."

"I don't do it on purpose," Harry said, swiping his ID card. The security had been ramped up and for good reason. "But, I guess that it was funny trying to see her figure out the obvious."

"Good thing she didn't ask someone like Lois or Kitty," Jean commented. "Because we know the amount of tact they have."

"You mean absolutely not tact at all, don't you?" Harry asked her.

Jean smiled, that's what she meant. She could see a few of the Shi'ar and Kree soldiers who waited for transport to the location where they would be on trial. No doubt there will be some deals cut. Harry figured that wasn't any of their business.

Some of them only were guilty of following orders. Following orders got people sent to death camps, so Harry wasn't too sympathetic to their cause. He supposed that people didn't have the spine.

And he was sure that people who get their panties in a snit regarding the fact that he took a hardline stance and sent D'Ken to the Phantom Zone.

"Another day, another invasion, I swear, you can set your watch by one of these things," one of the workers muttered, walking fast.

The fact Harry Potter and the current guardian of the Phoenix Force walked by the worker. She didn't bat an eyelash really showed how tired she was. Harry didn't honestly blame her. This was a really long week for all of them.

"Is the Empress of the Shi'ar still here?" Harry asked one of the guards.

"Harry Potter….yes she's still here and she still wishes to talk to you if you don't mind," one of the guards commented, taking half of a step back.

Harry smiled. He really did want to see what she had to say to him. Jean followed him.

Leaning in, she whispered in his ear. "So, are you saying that they worship the Phoenix like it's some kind of goddess?"

Harry corked his eyebrow and smiled. "I worship the Phoenix like she's some kind of goddess, because she is some kind of goddess."

Jean wasn't sure how to take that one. She got better control over her abilities. Of course, she kind of wished she would have been able to fry the Kree.

It was all about learning their limits. Jean could see two SWORD officers move a really big crate.

"Upgrades," Harry said, answering her question.

Jean couldn't say anything except whistle. She whistled and she whistled hard. Harry placed his hand on her shoulder and steer her forward.

The Empress waited for them calmly. She had a chance to bathe, have a couple of meals, and have a good night's sleep.

"Har-Zod, welcome," she commented. She smiled and also turned towards Jean. "And Jean, it's an honor."

"The honor is all mine, Empress Lilandra," Jean commented, her voice respectful. She looked the Empress long in the eyes.

Lilandra smiled at the gracious greeting. "Empress, that's something that's been a long time that I've heard. At least not in a biting and sarcastic manner. But it's something that I've welcomed hearing for a long time. I just hope that no one will cause trouble."

"Your brother has been sent off."

Lilandra remained calm and tranquil. She understood what Harry had to do. She understood the necessity of it. That didn't mean that she lacked any regrets because of it.

"Just in thought, that's all,"

"I understand," Harry told her in a tranquil voice. He leaned towards her. "If there's anything that I can do, all you need to do is ask."

Lilandra thought that was a blank check and if she was a bit greedier, she would take it. She wasn't greedy. The woman thought about choosing her next words carefully. She didn't want to irritate such a powerful and influential young man. Especially given that this was a young man who she owed a huge debt of gratitude for.

"I thank you for the offer and I appreciate it," Lilandra commented in a grateful voice. She could see those green eyes locked on her. "But I do owe you a great debt of gratitude and you have given me a chance to rebuild the Shi'ar empire. With any luck, we can undo the damage that my brother has caused."

She thought that was a shot in the dark that she was going rebuilt that. The Empress felt the determination and she was encouraged by how bravely Harry fought.

"You are a legend throughout the universe, and I see why," Lilandra commented. "Faora insisted each and every day that you would find us. It was just a matter of time."

"I'm sure that she'll be happy to be proven right," Harry said.

Lilandra smiled in response. "I'm certain that she will be."

She had to testify at the trial in front of the Guardians. Her sister's fate was still up in the air. They had to determine whether or not she worked with D'Ken willingly or she had been blackmailed. Told to work with him unless she wanted to share Lilandra's fate.

"I know that she'll be proven right, and she's currently resting now," Harry said.

Lilandra raised her eyebrow. "I'm pretty sure that she'll want to thank you in her own way."

Jean raised her eyebrow. It was obvious that the Empress felt inclined to thank Harry in her own way. The only problem was that there was something holding her back from paying off this debt. Jean wondered precisely what it was.

'_Obviously, she has her share of hang ups,' _Jean thought. There was a long sigh through her mind. _'Believe it or not, I can relate to that.'_

'_You improved, trust me,' _Harry thought to her.

Lilandra could tell that they communicated without words. She thought even though she sat in the room, she might have been intruding on some kind of conversation.

"I need to check with something, I just wish to thank you again," Lilandra commented to him. Her eyes flashed up against his.

"I understand what you're going through," Harry told her. "And worry about the affairs of your empire first and foremost. D'Ken and any of his associates, they did damage that will be in your hands to replace."

Lilandra sighed. That was an uphill battle for any ruler to complete. The woman felt like she was going to lose big time.

"I'm confident that you'll be able to do it though," Harry told her. "Trust me on this one."

'_Oh, she doesn't know how foreboding that one is.'_

Lilandra smiled for the first time in a long time. She had been imprisoned for longer than she cared to remember.

It was time though to do was necessary. It was time to heal the Shi'ar empire and maybe more importantly heal herself.

Time delivered us all to the world and healed all wounds.

Harry saw her walk off in the other direction. Jean raised her eyebrow.

"I'm more interesting in who brought D'Ken back from exile last time," Harry said to her. "Because I don't care what anyone says. He shouldn't have come back that first time, period."

Jean frowned at him. "I guess that's just going to have to be another adventure for another time."

Harry figured that she would have to be right. He also had to make his rounds in SWORD. Then he would swing by the Fortress to check up on how Faora was doing.

"I've got a lunch with Ororo, do you….."

"Not at all, tell her I said hi, and I'll see her real soon," Harry said. He swept Jean into a tight one arm hug and kissed her.

Jean spent a couple of seconds recovering from the kiss. Without words she told Harry that was exactly what she was going to do.

* * *

><p>Faora Dru-Zod was in the process of recovering from imprisonment and humiliation. She could deal with the pain that she suffered. The horrific way D'Ken treated his prisoners was something that she grew accustomed with. Faora prepared to pay for the sins of her father as well. That's just how things tended to be done throughout the galactic community.<p>

She didn't like being humiliated by her enemies. That was something she could not abide by.

The moment she had been taken out of her cell, she had been visited by a beacon of light. That beacon of light was her brother, Har-Zod. It had been too long she waited for him. She wondered how much he knew about his identity.

'_My father finally did something right in choosing the vessel, but he won't be getting out of the Phantom Zone any time soon,' _Faora thought to herself. _'Of course, he must have perished thanks to the elements by now, as many enemies he threw in there.'_

She passed out after being liberated from the Shi'ar prison. She wound up here. Not that she minded being here, wherever here was. It gave her a chance to stretch her legs and more importantly to relax.

This was actually a warm place. She was surprised given that her senses was that she was in somewhere that was less in warm.

Faora tried to get to her feet.

"I wouldn't move too much. Your legs had been broken. In time you will heal once you have absorbed enough yellow sunlight."

Faora fell backwards and sighed. Her legs had been broken. Repeatedly several times with several blunt objects and she had been forced back into a cell where she had been humiliated, mocked, and degraded.

"So, you're an artificial intelligence construct," Faora commented. There was something familiar about the woman's voice. She just couldn't place it exactly off hand.

"Yes, I am Lara Lor-Van."

"The wife of Jor-El," Faora muttered. She remembered her, her beauty, and her intelligence. She also remembered the fact that Lara did deserve so much better than she got. Jor-El tried hard but the problem was he was not equipped to deal with someone of Lara's caliber. "I understand that you had a daughter."

"The last one of Krypton," Lara commented.

"And judging by the fact that we're here, that means she at least made it off the planet," Faora said and she smiled. "And I'm sure my brother has taken her under her wing. Surely both of their fathers might be rolling over in their graves, well mine is rolling over in the Phantom Zone, if he still survives there. But you get the gist of the matter, don't you?"

"Exactly," Lara said with a smile. "Har-Zod…..well that was a bit of a surprise? Although I was intrigued about the method of which your father managed to…Lily did mention one time that she thought that she would be unable to have children. She said that someone named Snape cursed her. She also said that she felt personal pleasure of making sure he burned, literally."

"He deserves it for depriving people the right to have children," Faora said. Perhaps it was just her, but she assumed that this Snape must have done so for spiteful reasons. She would have done the same thing.

"He did, but that bastard is suffering and I can't say I'm sorry. But I hope I'm not too late to hear an origin story about…..well me. Call me crazy, but I'm always a sucker for a good origin story."

Faora blinked. This young man was full of surprises which she enjoyed.

"Har-Zod, it's good to finally meet you in the flesh," Faora said. She looked frustrated thanks to her limited mobility. "I'd get up to face you but….."

Harry reached towards her and placed his hand on her cheek. That caused her to look at him, blinking with a smile on her face.

"Believe me, under the circumstances, I can really understand why you can't get to your feet," Harry told her.

"I'm glad," Faora said, sounding breathless as she spoke. "D'Ken won't survive that place. Not without his support, not without his backup."

"Which is why I sent him there," Harry said, sitting down next Faora on the bed. "My mother's…..interest in artifacts really caused this to happen, didn't it?"

"Yes," Faora agreed. "From what I could tell, she touched the crystal and it rebooted her biological process to what it should have been before the damage was done. That allowed her to give birth to you. Naturally though you took on the appearance of the first man who she had relations with, which would be the man you thought to be your father. Obviously that would change slightly over the years…"

"So gradually that no one would notice the changes," Harry told to her.

She really was beautiful. Harry could also see a sinister undercurrent from her beauty. Not that he had a problem with girls like that. In fact some of the women that he knew were exactly like that. They might be trouble but Harry considered it a challenge to tame trouble.

"I figured that I had the heritage, but I didn't know that it came from one so infamous," Harry said.

"He might have allowed you to be created, but you're your own person," Faora said.

Harry smiled at her. He caught her checking him out. He didn't call her out on it. When she noticed that he noticed, she shamelessly kept up the action at him.

"You have to be your own person," Harry whispered to her. "If you're not your own person, what else would you be?"

"Spoken with true wisdom," Faora commented to him. "You're not a clone. You might not even be his son. I wouldn't be wrong to state that that your mother held a great deal of influence for your age."

"Since before my first birthday," Harry told her. "I didn't know James Potter. He's long since dead from what I heard. My mother is the only parent that I've known. She taught me everything that I needed to grow into the person, into the man that I am today."

"Say no more," Faora said, getting what he said straight away. She placed her finger on his lips and slowly traced it down his cheek. "You've grown up to be quite handsome."

"You approve of this, don't you?"

She smiled. "Yes, Har, I approve of this."

She shifted her legs together for that moment. Her smile grew even wider.

"Just relax, and get some sleep, I'll be here when you get well," Harry said.

"You have responsibilities," Faora said to him firmly.

"That's putting it bluntly," Harry told her with a grin.

"That's putting it logically," Faora corrected him. Whatever her brother was, he was the very best. While she only technically knew him for a short time, she felt like she knew him his entire life. "But you have responsibilities to attend to. I'm certain that you've got the future security of your adopted home world to deal with. I would be disappointed if you didn't."

"Well I would hate for you to be disappointed," Harry said. He closed in the gap towards her with a kiss.

Faora closed her eyes. She had never allowed another man to touch her. She wished she would have been able to rip D'Ken's head off personally to be honest.

This kiss caused her to relax and all thoughts of bloodshed and violence left her head.

Harry slowly pulled away from her. Faora looked dazed as she spent a couple of moments trying to allow her brain to reboot.

"Wow," Faora whispered when she looked back at him. She couldn't say any more than that. "Wow."

"Yes, wow, very much, wow," Harry told her with a smile. "Are you sure that will be enough to tide you over until you get back?"

"I'm just glad that you haven't been brainwashed by Earth taboos," Faora said, wincing when she moved.

"I will begin your solar infusion therapy, with any luck, you should be healed in no time," Lara said.

Faora's face crossed into a wicked grin. "Well, I'm sure that you'll be able to give me a very through going over."

"Don't worry, I'll be completely through and accurate," Lara said. She turned her attention towards Harry. "Harry, I will inform you when she's made a full recovery. Then we can figure out where to go from there."

"Right, thanks Lara," Harry said and he leaned in towards Faora. He planted a kiss on Faora's lips.

Faora took a few seconds for her brain to completely reboot because of that. She blinked and seconds later Harry was gone.

"He does have a few tricks that will blow your mind, honey," Lara commented to her. "So, shall we begin?"

"Gladly," Faora said eagerly.

* * *

><p>Carol arrived at the lobby of one of Harry's many office buildings. She wanted to get an assessment of what needed to be done and this seemed to be the best place to meet.<p>

"Hi, Carol."

Carol turned around and saw Kara standing there. Her hair was tied back in a ponytail, her glasses covering her face which made her look really hot. A bright smile crossed her face when she saw Carol approach. She was dressed in a blue blouse, a black jacket, and a flowing skirt that extended down past her knees. She looked extremely beautiful and also very professional.

"Hello, Kara," Carol said. She straightened up a little bit to see that she was checking out the younger girl.

Especially when said younger girl bent over the desk, her skirt rolling slightly to show her stocking clad thighs. She slowly straightened up a set of folders on the desk. The blonde slowly turned around, facing the older blonde.

"I've gotten a job of Harry's personal assistant, I figure you got to start somewhere," Kara said. She added as an afterthought. "And what better place to start is underneath Harry."

Carol whistled in response. Innuendo was not lost on her. "Well, I can't argue with that."

"He's upstairs in the conference room, I'll take you there, alright?" Kara asked her and Carol nodded in response.

Kara took her by the hand and led her up the stairs by the arm.

"We could take the elevator, but the stairs gives us a better chance to talk," Kara said. She discreetly positioned Carol in front of her. "And besides, you're in pretty good shape, so it's not like you have many problems heading up the stairs."

"No, I don't, no I don't," Carol confirmed, slowly walking up the steps. Her hips swayed when she moved. Kara's eyes stayed focused on her. Carol didn't mind, in fact she encouraged the eyeballing when she made her way up the stairs. "I don't have a problem with that, if you don't have a problem with it."

Kara smiled and decided to bring up a point. While Carol did present a nice view, it was important to have some kind of conversation.

"So, it's been a long time coming with you and Harry."

"Yes, Lily nudged me that way for a long time, but one thing or another kept coming up," Carol said with a sigh. "And it seems like there's an alien invasion every other week."

"I'm pretty sure that they're start thinking twice when Harry is in charge of the planet," Kara told her. Carol stopped slightly and hmmed in response. "Just thinking out loud."

"Yeah, you're right, after what happened to the Kree," Carol said.

Carol stopped at the front door. She offered a casual knock on it.

"Enter," Harry said to them. They entered. He was bent over the desk, looking at something.

"No, take your time," Carol said, the two of them enjoying the show.

Harry turned around and he walked over. He swept Carol into a tight embrace, nearly dipping her into the ground. Her cleavage was shown nicely and he pulled her up into a kiss.

Kara smiled when she watched them. Her nipples got a bit hard behind her shirt.

Carol sat down in a daze and Harry gave Kara a quick kiss.

"Now onto business," Harry told her. They all sat down. Carol sat on one side of Harry and Kara sat on Harry's other side. "The new defense system is designed after the field test of the grid went as expected."

"Yeah it took a while to get online, a bit too late though," Carol said. Her frown deepened.

"Better late than never, but we should never really rely on those defenses," Harry said. He grabbed her hand underneath the table with a smile. "But I've found a couple holes."

"Holes, that doesn't sound good," Carol said with a whistle.

"That's because it isn't good," Harry confirmed for her. "It's nothing really major to be honest."

"You told me just as well that even something really minor could be…."

Kara was playing with her pen and dropped it on the ground. She went underneath the table to retrieve it.

Carol took a second to return herself back to life, shaking her head. "You told me that something really minor could add up to something really major."

"And so I did," Harry told her. He prepared to walk Carol through what he thought. "SHIELD and SWORD worked fairly well today. Hopefully any future invasions will go just as smoothly. Providing we don't send them back to where they came from with their tail tucked between their legs."

Harry paused and he could feel a soft hand against his thigh when he was underneath the table.

"If only we can stop them before they reach Earth's atmosphere," Carol said. "All of this technology that we confisicated should teach us a lot. And hopefully strengthen our defenses."

"We need to learn how it works first, before we start playing with it," Harry said.

"And SWORD will, because that's our….that's our job," Carol said. She could feel something lightly brush against her inner thigh. That caused her to jump for a moment.

Harry felt his pants unzip and a fist tighten around him. It slowly pushed up and down onto him.

"Yeah, that is your job," Harry said. There seemed to be someone doing her job in helping him relieve a lot of stress underneath the table as well.

"Yes, and I think that we do….good at it," Carol said. Her voice was barely there and it was let out in a moan. "Harry are you…"

"Yes, I am," Harry told her. He could feel Kara speed up underneath the table. He received a very satisfying handjob at hyper speed.

One glance at the look of bliss on Carol's face indicated to him that he wasn't the only one who was being given some stress relief. She bit down on her lip.

"Oh…..well….oh god," Carol said, shaking her head. She rolled her hand over the top of her breast and shook her head. "I think that…I think that we can fix these holes and run some more stimulations….simulations, and we'll be good to go."

"Yes, very good to go," Harry grunted with a smile. He managed to shake his head and reboot his brain long enough to finish. Finish being the operative word because of that. "So, take that back to Abigail when we get done and we can get this project….cracking."

Harry's last word broke. He could feel the pressure burst, just in time for a warm hot mouth to dive onto him and work him to the end.

Carol bent down underneath the table and could see Kara come out from underneath the table. She slowly licked her fingers, making sure that Carol kept her eyes firmly locked on her.

Kara looked up at them with a smoldering and sultry grin. There was a smirk plastered on her face when she looked at them.

"What?"

Harry pulled her up to properly face him.

"You know what," Harry told her. "You started the job, now you're going to finish it."

"But, I think that it's time to return the favor," Carol said. Harry held Kara up and placed her on the table. Carol picked up Kara's hand and sucked her wet fingers. Carol got up, naked from the waist down from what Kara did to her. "Wouldn't you agree, Harry?"

Harry would agree. He really would agree.

**To Be Continued on November 8****th****, 2014. **

* * *

><p><strong>Technically speaking, Harry didn't know that Kara talked to Lois about the situation. So, that wasn't a mistake on my part. <strong>

**Lots of interaction in this chapter and that's the way I really like it with everyone involved. **


	19. Pandora's Box

**Chapter Nineteen: Pandora's Box.**

Claire smiled when she flew high above the ground. She felt completely liberated when she flew. It really gave her a sense of being alive. Her mother suggested that if she was a boy, she might have had troubles figuring out this ability to flight. Fortunately though she wasn't and she was able to fly high above the ground.

The only thing that people could see when they looked up was this super sonic blur that went faster than a speeding bullet. Claire was on her way to the Fortress to check on something.

"So, are you going my way?" a voice asked her.

Claire slowly turned around and smiled. Harry was right up next to her shoulder, going extremely fast behind her.

"I guess, if you're heading to the Fortress as well," Claire said, looking over her shoulder with a grin. She could see the Fortress was within range. She slowed down so she could talk to Harry.

"So, are you recovering from your bonding experience with Kara?"

"It was amazing, I'm sure we can only get closer," Claire said. She placed her hand on the side of her face.

She nearly dipped down to reach the Fortress.

"So, Har-Zod?" Claire asked him. This statement was extremely tentative as if she wanted to really watch what she was going to say.

"Yeah," Harry said to her. "But it's been Harry Evans for my entire life. Harry Potter for a little bit, but that name is so much of a relic that I don't even think about it."

"Fair enough," Claire agreed. The moment he said something, she backed off. She didn't mean to pry. "I can't believe that you had a sister that you just happened to stumble on. That's just your luck, isn't it?"

Harry grinned back at her. The two made their way at the entrance of the fortress. The pair of Kryptonians lingered for a second.

"My luck tends to be really weird but somehow it works out in the end," Harry said.

Claire gave him a light smile. "I feel like my luck is about along the same lines. You know, it works out pretty well in the end. Except for those parts where I die. Those aren't very pleasant, you know."

"Believe me, I know," Harry said. He squeezed Claire's hand tightly. "But you bounced back from it well enough."

Claire smirked. Only she could talk about her death so casually. Only Harry could talk about her death so casually.

"Mother has been doing tests on her to make sure she's able to withstand the environments on Earth," Claire said. She knew that she would regret asking this. She couldn't hold herself back. "What happened to her?"

"Enough where I wish I could see D'Ken being ripped to shreds in the Phantom Zone," Harry said darkly.

There was enough venom in his statement to cause Claire to shudder. She knew that it wasn't directed at her.

"Sorry, this has been a long last couple of days," Harry said. He took a second to calm himself down before he looked into her eyes seriously. "I've been working around the clock with everything."

"I know, Lois seems to be happy though," Claire said and she smirked. "This is the type of story that makes her career, or so she said."

"Yeah, I'm sure and she's been knocking it out of the park with this coverage," Harry said.

Claire shrugged her shoulders. She finally activated the key on the Fortress to allow them entry.

"Don't tell Lois that though," Claire told him. Harry arched an eyebrow. "I mean, she has a big enough head already. She's pretty much your ace reporter and she's being groomed to run the operations someday."

"So, I fail to see how I can inflate her head any more than it is," Harry told Claire.

Claire shook her head. She did hate it sometimes when her mate was right. And this was one of those times where her mate was right.

"So, do you think we should go check up on Faora now?" Harry asked.

Claire shrugged her shoulders as if to say that this was Harry's decision. It looked like that's what they were going to go so that's where they were heading. The duo slid their way into the Fortress.

They could see Faora in the midst of a test. Claire could see her body in all of its glory. Her dark hair draped over her face like a seductive and sensual curtain. Her bright blue eyes shined. Her skin had a glow underneath the simulated yellow sunlight. It was completely uncovered. Claire felt her focus divert on Faora's perfect round breasts. Her body was surprisingly fit and once she got herself back into shape it would be even more so.

Claire shook herself back to life.

"I want you to walk over and punch that metal sheet as hard as you can," Lara said. "If it helps, just imagine D'Ken's face."

"Oh that's not a problem," Faora said. She walked forward to join them with a new found spring in her step.

Her legs felt a bit better. The strength of the yellow solar radiation pulsed through her body. It was finally to the point where she could actually walk. She lifted her arm back and slammed it into the metal sheet. She left an imprint of her hand into the metal sheet and it swung back and forth.

"Not bad," Harry told her.

"Still weak," Faora said, turning her attention to Claire for the first time. She cleared her throat when she saw Claire checking out her body. Not that she minded. "You must be the daughter of Jor-El."

"In a matter of speaking, I guess," Claire said shrugging her shoulders. She didn't really identify herself as the daughter of that man. "And you must be the daughter of Zod."

"In a matter of speaking," Faora said, placing her hands on her hips. She didn't really identify herself as the daughter of that man. "So, it's good to meet you, and you're just as lovely as your mother is."

Faora stepped closer to Claire. She placed her finger on her lips and ran it down the side of her neck.

"Extremely beautiful," Faora whispered in her ear.

She staggered for a second and Harry caught her.

"I'm not one hundred percent yet," Faora said. She felt better than she had been in an extremely long time. "But I feel about eighty percent."

"Actually seventy seven point nine percent, but close enough," Lara said, calculating how well Faora was.

"Beautiful and smart, that's what I've always liked about you, Lara," Faora said. "Although your choice of men did leave something to be desired. But it wasn't your choice, was it? It was an arranged marriage like most of them were on Krypton. Matches to create scions that will fulfill a certain purpose. The General was the first to buck the trend of being natural born. They never found out until the end and they used that as ammunition against why natural born pregnancies should be outlawed."

"And he followed that natural born pregnancy with his children," Lara said. "And the only ones that remain are those who are of natural birth, as opposed to scientific method."

"There's a lesson to be learned about that."

Faora decided that she had her fun. She slipped on a pair of clothes. There were a few to chose from. She opted for a tight black blouse and a tight pair of black leather pants. She bent over to fully pull them on.

She was fully aware that she was being watched. Faora decided to make a bit of a show of it, pulling the pants up over her curve ass.

"Just take it easy," Harry told her. "You'll be back on your feet before you know it."

"In a few days by Lara's estimations and I can wait," Faora said. She could hear a beep on Harry. "So are you late for something?"

"Yes, for an extremely important date," Harry said. She smiled at him.

"One of many, I hope?"

Harry agreed with her with a calm nod. "One of many."

"I wouldn't have accepted anything less," Faora said. She was glad that she could walk with only a slight limp. That limp would work itself out once she had more of her treatments. She was glad that she was in the Fortress. Showing this kind of weakness among that many people.

"He's really great at not accepting anything less," Claire said.

"You've turned out alright," Faora commented, playing with Claire's hair once again.

Harry gave both of the girls a stern look. "Behave now."

"Yes, Daddy," Claire said in a mocking little girl voice.

"Lara, I give you my blessing to spank Faora if she gets out of line," Harry said.

"Oh, well now I have no real incentive to behave," Faora said, with a wicked grin. "But I'm sure that I can bond with Clara some more. I have so much to get caught up on with her, if you can believe that."

Harry could believe that. He left both of these girls to their wicked devices and walked off because he was late for a date.

He really hoped they would behave themselves when they were gone.

X-X-X

Harry wasn't the only one who was late for an extremely important date. Police barriers were up and cars were lined up outside of a bank. The population was told to be off the streets immediately.

There was a concussive blast. A man dressed in a red and yellow patchwork bodysuit with goggles charged the young spider themed heroine.

"Really, Herman, this is about the third time this month!" Spider-Girl said in agitation. "Is this just because of the fact that they installed a revolving door in the prison or that they just keep feeling sorry for you?"

"Shut your mouth!" Shocker yelled.

He tried to blast Gwen hard. She dodged the attack and went head over heels, landing on the ground.

"Oh that's a good one, that's really mature, you told me to shut up," Gwen responded dryly. She shook her head was completely sad. "Truly you are the most ultimate of criminal masterminds and should be commended for your great work and effort."

Gwen dodged a concussive blast again. The blast nearly destroyed a wall. She needed to wrap this up soon.

'_Yeah, I'm really late, good thing that my date has just as much of a chance at being tied up about something,' _Gwen thought.

Speaking of tied up, she tried to tie Shocker up. Shocker fought his way out of the attack on her. He charged her and blasted her with a concussive blast again.

Her suit protected her against Shocker's attacks. She needed to get those toys away from him.

He actually was rather inventive to create such a thing. It was too bad that he didn't have anything resembling common sense. The web slinger did a forward roll in midair and she launched her line of webbing at him. It hit the bullseye full and completely on.

Shocker grumbled and curse. Her web yank caused him to fall flat on his face. The criminal landed with a tremendous thud on the ground. His face cracked when he hit. That attack was like music to Gwen's ears.

"You bitch, I'll teach you to…"

"Hey, watch the language!" Gwen yelled.

A splatter of webbing caused his mouth to be shut. The blonde heroine did a flip up and kicked him hard.

He was webbed up on a lightpost. The man was a nice gift wrapped package for the police.

"I don't care what Jameson says, you're awesome Spider-Girl!"

Gwen's face cracked into a nice grin. She wasn't going to lie that it felt good to appreciated.

Her frantic thought picked up the pace. _'Oh, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late for a very important date.'_

She decided to web swing into her apartment building. She would get changed and then call Harry up.

"So, I'm not the only one that is running late today, am I?"

Gwen looked up, her mouth hanging open in shock. The one and only Harry Evans was in the house and in her apartment.

"I should have known that you would be here waiting for me," Gwen said. She beamed completely with a grin. "And for the record, I didn't even know that you were late. I was dealing with Herman."

"Again?"

"Yeah, the guy really needs to take up a more constructive hobby," Gwen suggested. "I mean all he does is get his ass kicked."

Gwen slipped off to the bedroom and changed.

"I was just checking up at Faora in the Fortress," Harry said.

"Oh?" Gwen asked, realizing that she was going to have to repair this costume. They got damaged, at least the normal ones did. "And how is she doing?"

"She's doing pretty well, thanks for asking," Harry told her. "It's a longer recovering period that we hope for, but she's recovering nicely. And she's at the Fortress getting to know Claire."

Gwen stopped and nearly dropped her web shooters. Her spider reflexes managed to catch them nicely before they fumbled directly out of her hand.

"Should I be concerned?" Gwen asked him.

"Maybe a little bit," Harry said with a chuckle. "I thought about sending Kara there to help out, but she's got other responsibilities now."

Gwen smirked. She was now dressed an elegant black dress that hugged her ample curves. She walked over towards Harry.

"I thought you wanted to appease the situation," Gwen said, a smirk fluttering over her face. "And you know, not make it much worse."

"I think that Kara's doing well blending in," Harry said to her.

"About as well as most teenage girls do in blending in, anyway," Gwen said with a sigh. "I know that you have to go and get the Trinity…..have you followed the Brazil lead by the way?"

Harry was wondering when this would come up. He should have known that Gwen was going to bring that point out.

"Yes, I followed it," Harry confirmed for her. Gwen raised her eyebrow as if to tell him that it was good. "There doesn't appear to be anyone else who knows the Cloak is there. Once we conclude our date, I'm heading off to SHIELD. Then I'm heading off to Brazil."

"Sounds like you have a full day planned," Gwen said, placing her arm around Harry's. The two of them entered the elevator. "I just hope that you've fit in some time for recreation."

Harry knew exactly what she was talking about. She was right. Strange told him there was a possibility that he could grow mad because of the powers. Judging by the state of Strange when it was all said and done, Harry figured out that much.

"You're telling me."

"Good thing you're able to multi-task and more importantly keep yourself sane," Gwen said and she leaned towards him. Her lips pressed against his with a searing and amazing kiss. It was nice but all too brief. "And I need to really take my own advice. Today, I fought Shocker, but he wasn't the first person that I fought today. The Enforcers, Rhino, and the Vulture."

"All in the same day?" Harry asked her.

Gwen sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "Yes Harry, all in the same day. It seems like there's some kind of conspiracy with them, isn't there?"

She always thought that there were times where criminals seemed to conspire to ruin her social light. The number of dates she and Harry got ruined because some criminal picked now to enact his evil plan. It didn't help with Harry having the worst luck in the world regarding these kind of things. And she didn't have that much better luck.

Harry placed his hands on her shoulders and smiled. "One could argue that the Sinister Six all got together in an elaborate plan to screw up your dating life."

"Hey, they attacked us one time, remember?" Gwen protested. She could feel his magic hands work over the back of her neck. That really felt good. She couldn't deny that. The ability of his hands roaming over the back of her neck stirred certain emotions.

"I don't worry, I do remember that."

Harry kept stroking the back of her neck. He leaned in to the back of her neck. Slowly, Harry kissed her neck. The young woman could feel his pleasure.

"You know, I think that the elevator is stuck," Gwen commented, practically letting out her breath in a giggle. "I mean can't you believe that. That's like the third time this week the fucking elevator in this building has got stuck."

Harry smiled, wrapping his arms tightly around Gwen. He spun her around so she could face her.

"You could just teleport us out, I guess," Gwen said with a shrug of her shoulders.

"I could," Harry admitted.

"But, I want to find out why the fuck this elevator keeps failing so badly," Gwen said. She sounded like she was at the end of her rope and they were right. "Actually on second thought, I'm already late enough as it is."

Harry smiled, that was true.

"And I know you're pretty late as well, not to count the alien invasion setting you back," Gwen added. "So, shall we?"

"We shall," Harry agreed.

He wrapped his arm around her waist and they disappeared on the floor that they needed to be with a pop.

Gwen realized something slowly when she landed on the ground.

"You know, maybe I should just have you teleport me back and for the very time," Gwen suggested. "I mean, it would limit some of the unnecessary drama and all that."

"Maybe," Harry said, and he led Gwen there. "Ready for lunch?"

"Surprised it isn't dinner with as late as I was running," Gwen said. She supposed though that dessert would be more than worth the wait.

X-X-X

Lily Evans arrived at SHIELD for the meeting. Carol arrived around the same time that she did.

"So do you have any idea what this is about?" Carol asked the redhead. She raised her eyebrow in response. "Or are we just grasping around in the dark?"

"I don't know," Lily admitted. "It could be about anything."

She did want to know where her son ran off on. She thought that he would be here in a few minutes but he was unfortunately missing in action. She wasn't reaching to the point where she worried. She knew that Harry had many things that occupied his time. A meeting with SHIELD might have been at least four or five at the list of priorities. And that if he was on a slow down.

"I'm glad that you two could make it. And The Sorcerer Supreme will be meeting us momentarily."

Lily and Carol saw Maria Hill turn up. She wore a form fitting SHIELD uniform that wrapped around her ample curves.

"Agent Hill….." Lily started and Maria shook her head. Lily corrected herself immediately. "Director Hill now, I took it. Well that's sudden."

"You're telling me," Maria said with a sigh. Nick Fury decided to drop off the grid, only giving her instructions to keep the ship running. That wasn't the first time that Fury had to go off for whatever reason. It was the first time that Maria had been left with the keys to the big girl's room. "You know, I thought that running SHIELD would be far more glamorous than it is."

Lily shook her head. She liked Maria and all, but she could tell her that running this ship would be a pain in the ass.

Carol chimed in with what Lily was thinking. "And you've figured out just like anyone else that it's pretty much a royal pain in the ass, wouldn't you say?"

"I would say," Maria agreed. "Let's just put it this way. I think that running a daycare center for special needs children would be less of a challenge than running SHIELD."

She decided that the sooner Harry was here, the better it was. Maria thought that having an excuse to duck out for a meeting with him worked for her favor. It would allow some time to keep the SHIELD vultures off of her back and she hoped to relax a little bit.

"There would be a lot less shit to deal with," Carol said and Maria raised her eyebrow.

"Indeed," the acting director of SHIELD muttered underneath her breath.

"Dare I ask if you know the reason why Fury decided to shuffle off like that."

"I think the best story I heard on my way here is that he got married over the weekend and he's on his honeymoon."

Maria spun around suddenly. She should be used to Harry sneaking up behind her like that. She should be used to him at least. She wasn't.

"I think that you get off on giving woman heart attacks," Maria told him with a smile.

"I get off on doing a lot of things to women, as you well know, Maria," Harry commented to her.

"So, wait, you think that Fury might have gotten married?" Lily asked.

"Yeah, Mom, I do," Harry confirmed to her.

Carol shook her head. She wasn't going to lie. The amusement of Nick Fury getting hitched appealed to her.

"His woman though…..have you seen her…."

"Let's just put it this way, she is the only one who could shut Fury down when he's in one of his modes," Maria commented. She placed her hands on either side of her hips. "And she's about as stubborn as a wall."

Harry cackled him amusement when it clicked with him in his head.

"Oh, I know who you're talking about," Harry said.

He would almost feel sorry for Fury except for the fact that he didn't feel sorry for Fury.

"Yes, I'm glad," Maria said, taking the folder from behind her back. "I'm sure that Fury will be really thrilled that we're discussing his love life behind his back."

Harry spotted the mischievous twinkle in his mother's right eye.

"That's all the more reason why we should be discussing Fury's love life."

"Oh, please, stop talking about Fury and love life in the same sentence," Carol said with a shudder. "That brings certain images to mind."

Harry shuddered at the thought of these images that this brought to mind. His mouth curled up and he shook his head.

"Oh thank you very much Carol, that was nice," Harry said. He shuddered a couple of times and spent a moment ridding his mind of the unholy images from his head. Carol looked at him extremely apologetically. "Could we just get down to business?"

"Yes, that would be for the best," Maria said. "I looked over the plans that you made. And I know that Fury had a chance to look over them before he departed."

Harry waited for the other shoe to drop.

"And?"

"I think that they're fairly sound and they should work in the circumstances," Maria continued. Her eyes shifted over them. "I could go for the rest of my life without seeing another alien invasion."

Harry's face curled into a pained expression. "For your sake, I hope that you're life isn't that short."

This was one of those instances where Maria hated that Harry was right. They would be seeing more alien invasions. The good thing was that they were being more prepared for them with each passing invasion. So there was that, but there was one bad thing.

They kept happening no matter how hard they tried to avoid them.

"With the alien invasions only becoming more advanced, we have to add some teeth," Lily said. "So far we've been lucky to get minimal casualties. The danger is only growing."

She shuddered to think what could happen if some random idiots got their hands on some of the alien equipment. If they started tinkering with it, they could create a weapon that was potentially devastating. It could be that deadly doomsday weapon that could blow them all away. Lily hated to think about that.

"Yes, the danger only grows, but we got to figure out how we're going to mitigate the danger when it happens," Harry said. "And we have more plans. I've got to head off to Brazil."

"Why do you have to head off to Brazil?"

"Sorcerer Supreme business," Harry commented to Maria. Carol and Lily both had a good idea of what he was doing but he remained silent.

Maria had a good enough idea that if it was Sorcerer Supreme business, it must not be anything that she wanted anything to do with. The new Director of SHIELD had her share of problems. She didn't need any more that came in the form of inter-dimensional enemies whose names they couldn't pronounce.

"Say no more," Maria said with a sigh. "I'd wish you good luck but I know that you don't need it."

Harry smiled back at her. "The sentiment is appreciated never the less."

Harry decided to add as an afterthought. "Do you think that you can handle that?"

"I think that I'm fine," Maria admitted. "I'll figure out SHIELD's end of the bargain. You are funding the project, so your work is done."

"Funded, designed, beta-tested, you name it," Harry said.

"Plugged all of the holes as well," Carol said.

"Well you are good at doing that," Maria muttered underneath her breath. She paused and flinched. That didn't really come out as clean and PG related as she would have liked it to a first glance. "But, if I have any problems, I'll be sure to let you know."

"I insist you let me know," Harry said and he made his way to the exit.

The meeting was far too brief. He nearly ran into a redhead woman in a skintight black suit that came off from the lift.

"Harry, I was hoping to run into you up here," Natasha Romanov said. "Duty calls, I take it?"

"Duty calls."

There was a loud smack as the two of them greeted each other. Natasha slipped off with a wide smile on her face.

The smile faded after seconds when she turned to Maria Hill. Natasha became all business after a couple more moments.

"I'm ready for my mission, Director Hill," Natasha said, her eyes liked onto those of Maria's.

"Yes, we think that HYDRA might be involved," Maria said. That went without saying sometimes though.

Nine times out of ten it seemed to be HYDRA, AIM, or aliens.

X-X-X

The Sorcerer Supreme arrived outside of the temple in Brazil. He wasn't sure what he was going to find. All he knew that he was going to hopefully find the Cloak inside.

This cloak belonged to him all of this time. Given the chaos of what happened, it got lost, sold, and went through several sets of hands. It went to an extremely eccentric collector, who disappeared and reappeared dead under mysterious circumstances.

That was the order of the day with a lot of the people who quested for the Unholy Trinity. They got their hands on at least one of them. Then they disappeared under mysterious circumstances. That was a rumor anyway. There were a few counterfeit cloaks, some counterfeit stones, and many counterfeit Elder wands. That muddied the waters a little bit and it was up to Harry as Sorcerer Supreme to separate the good things, from the BS.

"So, are you sure that this is the real Cloak or just another forgery?" Gwen asked him over the communication link.

"I have a pretty good sense that it's the real deal and not some carefully crafted forgery," Harry told her.

Harry was at the gates. Seconds later he brought down the gates.

"We know how well you mix with rune stones," Gwen said.

Harry smiled in a strained manner. "I know, don't remind me. They seem to want to activate something or someone that wants to kill me."

Harry thought that the words proceed with caution had never been so much more evident. He proceeded with all the caution that he could. The emerald eyed wizard slipped his way forward, careful not to trip anything.

"Judging by the data we've been able to find, the cloak should back there," Harry reported.

"Yeah, you know what else is back there?" Gwen asked them.

Gwen's question had no need to be answered. A flash of magic did a wonderful job in answering things nicely for Harry. There was a loud growl and Harry grew suddenly alert. There was a pitter patter of something on the other side for him.

"It's all coming back to me now," Harry muttered.

Several statues flashed to life. They were guardian warrior statures. The statues made their way forward.

The statues charged Harry one at a time. He jumped halfway up into the air.

Two of the statues smashed themselves. Harry supposed that you got the quality of charm work that you paid for. Turning these statues into mindless brutes that were only set up violence might not have been the best idea.

Harry dodged a blast of energy. The wall solidified to stone from the blast that would have hit Harry had he not ducked. Harry wondered if these statues were once people who tried to collect the cloak from this temple.

He figured that it was a likely thing. The green eyed wizard avoided the attacks of the statue. Two of them blasted each other.

Harry wasn't sure if that would work. He observed the stone statues creaking to a grisly stop. Harry frowned and looked over the statues.

Sure enough it appeared to be good. Harry launched himself up high into the air and took them out. He didn't want to take any chances that they would reactivate.

"It seemed like their skin turned to something that matched their heart," Harry commented, carefully shifting through the locks on the room with the cloak.

There was a certain order to do this. If he messed this up, well there was a pretty good chance that the next person who tried to take the cloak from the temple would be greeted by a stone statue of the one and only Harry Potter.

Much to his glee, Harry cracked the stone locks of the temple open. The locks glowed to light and he pushed through.

"You got it, didn't you?" Gwen asked.

"Yes, I got it," Harry said to her. He would have done a dance if he wouldn't have looked so absurd. "One down, three to go."

"And how far are you to go?" Gwen asked him.

Harry answered her question honestly. "I've got a pretty good lead on the second one but there's a lot of obstacles that I have to overcome. There are a lot more counterfeits on that one."

"Right, and dare I ask how many counterfeits on the wand?"

"Too many," Harry replied grimly. "But I can see what's worth my time. It's all about finding a needle in a haystack."

"Good luck," Gwen said and she meant that wholeheartedly. She really did honestly.

"Luck, might not be something that I need," Harry offered her. "The sentiment is appreciated though one hundred percent of the way. I need to run a scan before I head off to the area where I think the stone might be."

Harry had this sixth sense that there was some kind of trouble. There were energy particles that were in the air, almost like someone else scouted out the area.

That fact alone made Harry become doubly careful to not trigger the attention of the wrong people out there.

"So, how would you like a proper date while I waiting for the scan to conclude?"

X-X-X

"It's the worst fate of it all. I was not the one to humiliate and defeat Stephen Strange. Time did that for me, and now there is a new Sorcerer Supreme. I didn't rip the mantle from Strange's hands, he passed it on to another."

Baron Mordo made his way to Slaughter Swamp in Gotham City. He knew that tonight was the night.

He placed a large book on the pedestal and pulled an enchanted dagger from the bag.

"You will rise tonight, on your night," Mordo said. "And I will use you as a puppet to squash the Sorcerer Supreme."

Mordo prepared to raise him from the Swamp. The man got even more excited.

There was a figure in the shadows who waited and watched. He would use Mordo as a puppet to distract Potter. That would leave him to the second key of the Unholy Trinity.

The loud grumbling growl echoed from the swamp. "SOLOMON GRUNDY BORN ON A MONDAY!"

**To Be Continued On November 10****th****, 2014. **

**Gwen and Harry combined would have some bad luck when it comes to dates. It seems like with great spider powers comes the worst luck ever. **

**An interesting SHIELD scene will raise some questions that will best be left to the imagination of people involved.**

**Oh Claire and Faora left unsupervised, no that's not going to end well at all. **

**And it's Grundy. **


	20. Not Your Traditional Date

**Chapter Twenty: Not Your Traditional Date.**

* * *

><p>Perhaps Gwen was being a bit more optimistic than she should be about how successful this date would be. She had been that way before. She was excited to continue the date with Harry right where they left off earlier. She mentally went things over in her head.<p>

There were no really big super villain attacks. That was a big check mark in her life. Gwen hoped that her bad luck was going to leave her alone tonight. When you added Harry to the equation, the two of them both had some really rotten luck when dealing with super villains and their dates.

She had a nice dress and Harry had a reservation for one of the highest class places. Gwen thought that it was so high class that it almost seemed pretentious. The blonde's lips curled into a smile when she patiently waited for him.

Harry returned from Brazil and there was something that might be watching him. For most that could be alarming but for Harry it was just another day.

"Sorry I'm late."

Gwen turned around, and she saw Harry standing there. She hoped that this next date didn't end up like their last one. Her eyes took a moment to devour him.

"No problem," Gwen said, and she sauntered over towards Harry. She made her way towards him with amazing agility and poise. Her arm locked into his and she pulled him in. "So, let's take this one from the top?"

Harry laughed. "From the top, although I think that you could end up on the bottom by the end of tonight."

Gwen raised her eyebrow in minor amusement. "Is that a promise or a threat?"

Harry spun her around until she was in a tight embrace. His eyes met her bright blue eyes. Harry leaned forward to whisper into her ear. "It's anything that you want it to me, Miss Stacy."

The two of them made their way to Harry's car, one of many. Gwen thought it was amazing to be sure. It was more of a hobby than anything. Gwen thought that he had impeccable taste though, based off her nonexistent expertise on cars.

"After you, my dear lady," Harry said to her.

Gwen didn't want to say anything. She made her way into the passenger's seat of the car. There was more than enough room around here.

"Thank you, and you really went all out tonight," Gwen said eagerly. It was almost like she crossed her fingers, which Harry called her out on.

Harry looked highly amused by her actions. "Are you crossing your fingers?"

Gwen was about ready to protest this accusation but she couldn't really tell a lie. The blonde looked flushed like a little girl who had her hand caught within a sweet jar. "Can you really blame me?"

Bright blue eyes locked onto emerald green eyes.

"Given past circumstances, no."

Gwen blew the strand of hair out of her face. Harry placed his arm around hers and pulled her in close.

"We're going to have an amazing evening, trust me," Harry said. He leaned in, nibbling on her ear lobe. That caused her to shiver. Harry kept it up.

"Harry, you know that spot's sensitive," Gwen whimpered. He smiled and increased his actions on her. "You know, if you keep this up, we might not even get to where we want to go."

Harry raised his eyebrow at her. "Oh, is that so?"

Gwen fired back with a wicked grin on her face. "Yeah, that's so."

She did feel like she relaxed. It was at this point where she didn't think that anything would go wrong. Much to both her disappointment and her relief, Harry ceased his tormenting actions on her, at least for now.

Gwen thought that she might not make it through the meal without jumping Harry. That being said, a meal was a meal. She wasn't about to pass up the chance to get some free and delicious food.

"We won't be too far away from being there," Harry whispered, leaning into her.

Her hand lightly placed on his hand and she tried to see how much she could get away with in the car. Her wicked eyes met his.

"You know, I could just pull over this car and spank you."

Gwen's smile grew even wider. "So, tell me, Mr. Evans? Is that a threat, or is that a promise?"

"It's whatever you want to make out of it, Miss Stacy?" Harry asked. As he spoke he subtly shifted his fingers underneath her skirt.

Gwen felt the rush that spread between her thighs. It was obvious that he intended to tease her something fierce. A dark blush appeared on her cheeks when Harry continued to toy with her.

"Believe me, it's anything that you want me to make out of it," Harry whispered, placing his mouth on the edge of her ear.

Before this could go on any further, there was a buzzing sensation that went off. Harry regretfully pulled his hand away from Gwen.

Gwen groaned and it wasn't just because of her denial either. "Oh God, don't tell me…."

"Sorcerer Supreme business calls," Harry said and Gwen decided to lean towards him.

"I understand," Gwen said with a sigh. He groaned which caused Gwen to look at him with interest. "What the…."

"It's coming from Gotham City," Harry explained to Gwen. That caused the blonde's mind to completely go insane processing that. She whistled and looked really grim.

Gotham City, anything that came from Gotham City, well Gwen was rather reluctant to go there. She didn't blame anyone for steering clear of Gotham City. It did have that quality of sucking everyone completely in to a vortex of absolute insanity.

"There's a piece of good news then."

Gwen shook her head. If there was anything coming from Gotham City, she had to suspect that it wasn't good. Her hand grasped around Harry's and squeezed him hard. His eyes locked onto hers.

She noticed something when her eyes averted to Harry's cell phone when he picked it up. The blonde was caught off guard. It took her a few seconds before her brain rebooted.

"How many people are telling you what's happening in Gotham City?" Gwen asked him.

"I have an extensive network," Harry said.

He figured that this was a distraction of some sort. It would have to be one. The timing was too much of a coincidence for it to be anything but a distraction. Harry didn't do coincidences at all.

"I'm going to have to take a raincheck on this date," Harry said and he leaned in to kiss Gwen.

Gwen returned the kiss for a moment. "Yeah, I know."

"Don't worry, you know that I pay with interest," Harry told her. Gwen's expression brightened up.

Harry paying with interest was something that she could take to the bank. No finance puns intended obviously. Gwen's grin grew even wicked when she thought that she might have just gotten something even more special than she would have gotten. That brightened the blonde's day up.

"For the record, I was prepared for something happening tonight," Gwen said. Harry looked at her, with a frown across his face. Gwen rapidly shook her head. "I know, call me paranoid but…that doesn't meant that I can't be prepared."

"You should be prepared, I would be disappointed if you weren't," Harry said. "How is the new armor?"

"It got a bit of a test run when I was dealing with the Kree," Gwen said.

The results for that test run proved to be extremely promising. It told Gwen one thing that if it was able to hold up against alien invaders, there were very few things that it wouldn't hold up against. That was extremely promising for her.

"I'm glad that you had a chance to beta test it because you're going to need it," Harry said. He didn't mince words, getting straight to the point. Gwen appreciated that somewhat for many reasons. "It's Grundy."

Gwen took a second to process it. That was not encouraging news for her.

"You mean Grundy, Grundy? As it Solomon Grundy born on a Monday, Grundy?"

"Yes, that Grundy," Harry confirmed to her. "So, ready to suit up?"

Gwen didn't want to say anything. She just nodded, her jaw set. When wasn't she ready anyway? She always had to be ready. Those crazed criminals attacked at a moment's notice. Even the somewhat sane ones were capable of spontaneous crime.

"You do give the air of someone that was ready."

Harry decided to track the Grundy sightings. Grundy was around a certain area of Gotham City, striking terror in the hearts of citizens. If Grundy was around, his master was sure to follow. Harry planned to take down the swamp zombie and put him back under ground.

"So, I'm guessing that it won't be a matter of just killing Grundy, because he's already dead," Gwen said in a rabid fire pace. "You know because of the fact that he's a swamp zombie and everything like that."

Harry nodded.

"Take down the master, the slaves will always fall," Harry said.

"Do you think that this has anything to do with what happened in Brazil?" Gwen inquired of Harry. Harry only raised his eyebrow at her. Gwen amended her statement. "Right, it has everything to do with what happened in Brazil."

* * *

><p>Gotham City was a place that Harry visited countless times. There are a lot of people who gave the city a wide birth. Harry decided that it was unfair. While there was a lot of people in the city that caused some trouble, in some twisted way, Harry saw the city as home.<p>

'_Maybe I am that twisted,' _Harry thought.

Harry knew that he grew sentimental at the weirdest times and indeed for the weirdest reasons. Takign any kind of trip into Gotham City was what he would consider a weird reason.

There were at least eight confirmed sightings of Solomon Grundy. There had been a lot of Grundy copycats. It was as especially close to Halloween, where they were just a matter of days now.

"The fact we're so close to Halloween shows why Grundy rose from the Slaughter Swamp," Harry said to her.

Dead bodies weren't exactly a strange sight in Gotham City. The sight of dead bodies indicated that they were in fact in Gotham City.

"We're very close to Grundy's last attack," Harry said.

Spider-Girl shifted her stance on the ground. She felt a chill that coursed through her bones. It was like a real life haunted house. Only it was without the D-level special effects that were scary when you were five, not so much so when you were much older than that.

"Magic leaves an imprint," Harry said. He traced his finger down the residue.

The green eyed young man could sense that whoever riled up Grundy was not working alone. He mentally went through the number of magic users that could have done this. There were more than a few enemies of the Sorcerer Supreme that looked to be taking a crack at the new one.

If they thought that Harry would be soft on than as Strange was, they had another thing coming. A few of the demonic entities with names too weird to pronounce found that out the hard way.

"Monster, monster, monster," a shell shocked gangster whispered. This formally hardened criminal was lucky enough to be spared by Grundy. If one would consider having a close encounter with the mystical swamp zombie to be any form of luck.

His fellow mobsters on the other hand didn't share his lucky fate. They were beaten and battered to an absolute pulp. All that remained of some of them was large splatters of blood on the wall. Harry was pretty sure that some brain matter was mixed in. Skulls were most certainly crushed, he could bring that much to the bank.

Gwen let out her breath in a low whistle. "Damn, when Grundy strikes, he doesn't pull any punches."

"Where did Grundy go?" Harry asked, hanging the mobster upside down. His face contorted into dark shadows with glowing red eyes.

The mobster nearly shit himself. Whoever this guy was, he was far scarier than any swamp zombie that he had to deal with. He tried to act tough but it was kind of hard when he was scared completely witless.

"Please don't hurt me!" the mobster screamed at the top of his lungs. He kept shaking like a leaf on a tree.

"We won't hurt you, unless you annoy us," Gwen said. She didn't know whether she was playing the good cop or the bad cop. She wasn't sure if there was a good cop in this situation. She snapped her fingers down on the top of his head. "And you're not going to annoy us, are you?"

"No, no, no, Spider-Girl, absolutely not!" the mobster screamed at the top of his lungs. He looked extremely terrified beyond all belief.

"Excellent, I'm glad that you aren't going to….."

Gwen's spider sense kicked off. She jumped out of the way and the large monster charged her. She sent a batch of electrified webbing at him.

Grundy gave a harsh growl when the webbing wrapped around his body. His eyes looked like they rolled into the back of his head as he screamed out in agony!

She thought for on wild moment that she had Grundy down and out for the count. Unfortunately, it never was that easy especially in her line of work. The loud growl punctuated that quite nicely.

"SOLOMON GRUNDY, BORN ON A MONDAY!"

Grundy rushed her from behind. The blonde jumped over the top of his head. Grundy rushed into the whirling fists of Harry Potter. Two magical blades sliced into Grundy.

The swamp monster staggered back. Sickening black blood dripped to the ground or maybe it was tar. Regardless he got cut up extremely bad. There was some kind of magical enchantment that dinged him up something fierce.

"CHRISTENED ON A TUESDAY!"

Harry sent a blast of fire towards Grundy. The monster nearly fell over onto his back and gave a harsh scream.

"I don't think that did much more than to make him mad," Gwen said, chewing on her bottom lip in worry.

"Yeah, I guessed as much," Harry admitted with a loud grunt.

Grundy charged both of them again. Harry decided to lure Grundy away from civilization before he caused any more damage. He did cause a lot of damage as he was.

The three of them disappeared with a pop and landed outside of the Slaughter Swamp. Harry read the rune stones or at least tried to. The large fist of Grundy tried to take his head off.

The fist connected with a magically conjured shield. Harry knocked Grundy backwards with an intense attack.

He slashed into his chest and Grundy wasn't really playing ball any more.

"MARRIED ON A WEDNESDAY!"

Spider-Girl sent another blast of webbing at him. She tried to burn Grundy's face. Grundy gave a howl of agony and pain.

"Yeah, that wasn't such a hot idea!" Gwen shouted. Grundy took a huge rock and hoisted it above his head. "Hey, Croc's going to sue you for gimmick infringement."

Harry blasted the rock, causing it to smash over Grundy's head. The swamp monster charged Harry one more time.

The green eyed young man disappeared before Grundy's eyes. Three different versions of Harry appeared around Grundy. All of them held flaming daggers that he shot at Grundy.

"TOOK ILL ON A THURSDAY!" Grundy managed. He struggled up to his feet and made his way there. He was more pissed than ever before.

He could see Spider-Girl rush towards him. Spider-Girl did an acrobatic flip and tagged him with a dozen of rapid fire kicks to the chest.

"You're going to take ill on every day when I get through with you!" Spider-Girl. Her attacks suddenly were stopped. Grundy grabbed her around the torso.

She activated a function on the armor which caused an electrical pulse to stagger Grundy. More daggers shot into Grundy's back.

The black blood oozed from the back of the swamp zombie.

"Grew worse on a Friday," Grundy managed. The zombie's world was growing blurry. He picked up a rotting log and tried to take off the head of both of his enemies.

The thing was that Grundy did in fact grow worse. His head looked like it was about ready to cave in from getting nailed with a blunt force explosion from it. The chaotic magic was the only thing that kept Grundy going.

The good thing was that Harry managed to obtain a fair bit of experience regarding chaotic magic as of late. He kept Grundy on the ropes.

"Distract him, not a problem," Gwen said. She could see that Harry was about ready to work some amazing bit of magic.

She could feel the rush of power going around her. It was hard not to get excited with this all.

"Died on a Saturday!" Harry yelled and he activated the runes.

Each of the rune stones blinked to light. There was a loud and chaotic sounding explosion that came from them.

Gwen's shields thankfully held up. She was sure that Harry didn't intend to blow her straight into the next life. It did annoy her that she came very close to doing so. The blonde bit down on her lip with an intense frown.

The magic hit its intended target and Grundy was backed off towards his swamp. The monster was in absolute pain.

"Time to return to your torment until the next time someone raises you from the grave."

Grundy's arms whirled around. He tried to keep himself standing up.

"Oh, and buried on a Sunday!"

Harry cracked a whip shot down on the back of his head. The magic rose up from the swamp. A swirling vortex vacuumed Grundy's body back into the swamp!

"We better run."

Gwen didn't need telling twice. Harry grabbed her arm and the two of them flashed out of the way. Just in time too by the looks of things. They didn't want to get caught in the crossfire.

There were several explosions from the area of Slaughter Swamp. Gwen's mouth hung open, holding his arm.

She needed to finish the poem, it was only fitting. "And this was the end of Solomon Grundy."

She had to keep herself from adding for now at least. They would have to worry about how this panned out later.

* * *

><p>Baron Mordo was completely outraged. This was supposed to be the perfect plan. He brought forward one of the most dangerous supernatural entities in the world. Solomon Grundy, he was going to rip apart anyone in his way.<p>

"What went wrong?" Mordo asked him. The man shook his head. He was completely flabbergasted beyond all belief. "It should have worked."

"Should have, but didn't."

Mordo saw that his position had been compromised. He disappeared into a flash of light just like that.

He saw that the Sorcerer Supreme was here. Despite the fact that he wanted revenge on him, even if it wasn't the same Sorcerer Supreme, he wasn't willing to go for a straight up fight.

Mordo decided to seal off his stronghold. He looked at the book that he received that allowed him to raise Grundy.

The book exploded into black fire into his hand. He dropped it down onto the desk. Mordo spun around.

"Don't think that you could get away that easily."

He heard the Sorcerer Supreme but he couldn't see him. Mordo's hands shook and he blasted it hard. There was a glowing light around the area.

"Come out and fight me!" Mordo yelled. He waved his hands and tried to make Harry Evans appear. "Come and fight me, you're about as bad as Strange."

"Some might take that as a compliment," Harry commented.

The curtains behind Mordo shifted. He gave a pained grimace when they nearly wrapped around him.

"You know, I could crush you at any time," Harry told him. "But I want to know who you have been in bed with. Someone stirred up to raise Grundy. I want to know."

Mordo thought that he saw a shadow that looked like the Sorcerer Supreme. He sent an immobilizing spell at him and everything vanished.

The Baron breathed heavily and thought that he was done with him.

"Strange should have chosen better for his apprentice," Mordo said. He tried to attempt to save face even though he was fighting a losing battle "If only I had destroyed him, you wouldn't have suffered because of your arrogance."

"Well, we have different ideas about what is arrogance."

Harry appeared out of the darkness and he wasn't playing around this time. Mordo sent blasts of energy towards him. He lifted his hands and there was a shield that appeared around him. Mordo's blast impacted it. Said blasts didn't even move the shield by a dent.

He could see that Mordo was tiring himself out with his frantic attempts to get one shot in on him. Harry barely used one drop of magic when Mordo attacked him.

"Don't you dare…I will destroy you!" Mordo howled at the top of his lungs. He fired two bolts of energy at the edge of shield. "You can't hold up this shield forever."

"I won't be able to, maybe," Harry said. "If I use more than a percent of my power while you keep burning you out."

Mordo refused to listen to this obvious warning.

'_Is he really trying to break that shield?' _Gwen asked. _'He's going to end up burning himself out in no time at all.'_

'_Yeah, that's the best way to fight, but I think that I better wrap this up, and find out who was riling him up,' _Harry thought to her.

He blitzed through Mordo's next attack and burned his hands. The Baron fell backwards, his hands completely burned.

"There's no way, you can't," Mordo whispered at the top of his lungs.

"You find out that there are a lot of things that I can do, that Strange never tried," Harry said.

He fired a series of energy bolts at Mordo. They slammed into his shoulders and trapped him against the wall. He tried to squirm out of where he was.

"I'm going to ask you one more time," Harry said. Mordo tried to twist his way out.

"I don't know who did it," Mordo said. He summoned one more spell in an attempt to attack his enemy.

"He gave you the book sight unseen," Harry said, ripping open Mordo's mental shields.

Mordo screamed. He never had anything happen to him like this when he fought Strange. He was trapped in a prison of his own mind.

Harry pulled out of his mind, finding out what he needed to know.

He would have allowed Mordo to go away quietly when he banished him into Limbo, providing Mordo didn't attack him.

Mordo attacked him. The young man blocked his attack and fired the attack with a ricochet. He disappeared into a flash of light.

The blood curdling scream of Mordo echoed in Harry's ear when he disappeared into the light.

Harry disappeared. He didn't even break a sweat.

"So, any luck?"

Gwen showed up behind Harry. Her arms wrapped lightly around the back of his neck. "He disappeared sight unseen."

"That about figures," Gwen grumbled, shaking her head.

"I believe that we have a date to finish," Harry said, turning things around into a lighter manner.

Gwen raised her eyebrow and grinned. "Third time lucky?"

She hoped so. The two of them left, with Harry taking inventory of the fortress around him. He frowned deeply.

"Do you have the same feeling that you had in Brazil?" Gwen asked.

"Yes, he may have stirred up Mordo even more than usual," Harry said. The smoldering remains of where Mordo's shoes rested was seen in front of him. "But he's gone now. I've got a better idea now and if I'm right…trouble doesn't even begin to cover things."

He could only keep an eye out for any further chaotic magic. He thought this enemy really pushed things this time. And it might only just be beginning.

* * *

><p>"So far, so good," Harry commented to him. "I didn't see anyone follow us back to cause any trouble."<p>

"That's good…..unless they pop out of nowhere and attack us," Gwen said. She sighed. She was going to put even odds on that to be honest.

The blonde shook her head to clear these negative thoughts. It seemed like many of their dates had bad luck. Gwen didn't mind though. She had been driven so far around the bend that a fight with a giant swamp zombie seemed like a good time to her.

"You didn't mind the side trip for the date, did you?" Harry asked her.

Gwen paused and shook her head. "No, Harry, trust me, I didn't mind it at all. And I know that you will more than make it up to me in due time."

Gwen brushed her hand over the top of Harry's chest. Her bright blue eyes matched his and she shook her head.

"I know that you'll make it up for me in due time," Gwen commented, repeating herself. "Did I repeat myself one time too many?"

Harry laughed. "You're just hinting at something. And I'm happy to pick up where we left off earlier…in a little bit."

Harry and Gwen made their way up to a private room where a nice dinner was set out.

"Guess you didn't want to tempt fate going out in public again," Gwen commented with a raised eyebrow. Harry turned his head towards her. "Not that I don't mind and in fact I agree with you. We've tempted fate enough tonight. If our rogue's gallery will just leave us alone…"

Harry leaned towards her and kissed her on the lips. Gwen could feel that this worked rather well in stifling any rambling that she had. Harry's tongue brushed against hers and he cupped her face.

Gwen gave herself a moment for her brain to reboot. Harry pulled out the chair for her and allowed her to sit down.

She took a bite of the food that was set out in front of her. The blonde's eyes closed when she chewed on the food.

"You always have the best connections for food," Gwen commented and she reached forward, picking up a scrap of the food. She placed it in Harry's mouth and allowed him to eat it.

"I am glad that you approve," Harry said. He tried not to look too smug even though it was in his charming nature to be so. Gwen smirked and allowed him to feed her a piece of the food.

Gwen paused and placed her finger up on his chin. "Oh, sorry, guess I got some steak sauce on your chin."

"Why don't you take care of that?"

Gwen took care of that. She placed her finger on his chin and popped the steak sauce soaked finger into her mouth. She closed her eyes and sucked it. The blonde's eyes glazed over when she looked at Harry.

"What?" Gwen asked.

"You know what?" Harry asked her.

Harry could feel her foot brush against his thigh. It was obvious that she was having some fun riling him up and teasing him.

"I hope that dessert will be just as good as the food is," Gwen commented. In a not so subtle manner, she ran her foot up and down Harry's leg. When she was done she rested it on Harry's lap.

She kicked her shoe off and she had nothing but her stocking clad foot resting on Harry's lap. She tried, perhaps in vein, to psyche him out. She could feel Harry's hand rest on the top of her foot.

"Oh, I don't know, you tell me," Harry said, not being one to be psyched out that much. He slowly stroked the sole of her foot.

Gwen's eyes faded over and there was an amount of pleasure that flashed through them. Harry stroked the sole of her foot over and over again.

"Well…..we should finish this up," Gwen whispered, his attentions causing the area between her thighs to become extremely wet. She tried not to show it.

She staked the potato with a shaky hand with the fork. She slowly placed it into her mouth and chewed on it.

"I think that I have something delicious that I want to eat for dessert," Harry said, running his hand slowly up her leg.

The blonde whimpered with pleasure and shook her head. "And I'm sure that you could have everything that…..I want."

Gwen "accidentally" dropped her fork underneath the table.

"Oh, I can't believe that I've been that clumsy," Gwen commented. She looked sheepish.

Harry smiled; he could see what her game was. Gwen slowly slunk underneath the table.

The young Sorcerer Supreme waved his hand and the plates faded off of the table. He knew that he would have to have a clean table for what he wanted to have for dessert and dishes impeded everything.

Gwen went to work underneath the table, unbuckling his pants. She slowly stroked him underneath the table.

The fun was about ready to begin and Harry just leaned back to enjoy what his horny girlfriend did to him.

* * *

><p>A group of shadow creatures circled a pedestal that was out in the middle of a large cavernous basement area. A discolored golden ring rested on the pedestal with a glowing stone on it.<p>

The last user of this stone might have been among this creature. The power of the stone of Resurrection increased and the curse spread through several users. First the curse started by rotting the hand and then it spread up the body. Organs were destroyed, skin melts, and bones burn, until the user of the Stone was reduced to nothing but a shadow wraith creature.

It was unknown if the stone evolved to that point or it had been a curse that had been placed on it. Regardless the creatures paraded around the stone.

The portal opened up and what appeared to be a young boy appeared out of the portal. His eyes glowed like yellow slits. He wore a suit and his dark hair had two strands that stuck up like devil horns.

The wraiths backed off to him. They sensed that he was some kind of master of grand chaos. The energy flowed about the area of his body.

Klarion approached the pedestal with the second one of the Unholy trinity. Much to his dismay, he missed the cloak. It was no matter.

"Back off!" he yelled. He raised his hands in the air and blasted two bolts of light at the shadow wraiths.

The wraiths backed off and scattered in different directions. Klarion did one simple test to make sure this stone was not a counterfeit.

It was the real deal. Klarion scooped the stone into his hand.

"Sorry, Sorcerer Supreme, this time, I hold the Checkmate," Klarion whispered, shaking his head.

There was a moment where he looked at the stone. It was so much power, so much awful, chaos bringing power, that it caused him to shudder in anticipation.

He wanted revenge on Harry Potter even before he was the Sorcerer Supreme. He stalled his attempts to grab the Helmet of Nabu.

Klarion could not be killed because there had to be chaos for there to be order. Klarion felt like he was the personification of all things chaos.

The Chaos Lord held his hand in the air and escaped through the portal. The wand would be the trickiest to found.

The Sorcerer Supreme had one and the Chaos Lord had one. The game was on.

A portal opened seconds after Klarion left. His scan concluded and the Sorcerer Supreme arrived. He casually blasted the wraiths out of the way.

He came to the pedestal and the stone was gone. Harry was much slightly late to the party.

"You just missed it?" Gwen asked, recognizing what Harry's sigh was.

"Yes, I just missed it, barely though," Harry said. "I now know who stirred up Mordo to let Grundy out of the box through.

**To Be Continued November 13th, 2014. **

* * *

><p><strong>So Klarion was kind of hinted at during the first chapter. That may have been a sneaky bit of foreshadowing. <strong>

**Gwen is my second favorite after Kara, so obviously she's going to be on that same level. It actually might be a tie. So she gets plenty of screen time here. **

**Grundy is fun for a one chapter threat but he's put down. **


	21. Race for the Elder Wand

**Chapter Twenty One: Race for the Elder Wand. **

* * *

><p>Harry scanned around the area where the Stone of Resurrection once was. He frowned deeply when he kept looking around. His green eyes fixed on everything. Slowly but surely he began to clarify his theory. He let out a low whistle.<p>

He snapped his fingers and shook his head. "It's just as I fear, an old friend of mine is back."

Harry figured that the witch boy would have tried to lead a false trail to try and throw him off of the trail. He lifted his hand and retracted the rune storms. The wraiths hovered around the pedestal. Without the stone, all of them looked like they were without a purpose. His eyes narrowed.

"Any luck?" Gwen asked him.

"I'm pretty sure he has the stone," Harry said. He came to one extremely grim and likely conclusion. "And it was the stone, stone, not some counterfeit of the stone."

"So…..I've got to ask you a question," Gwen commented and she could see that she had Harry's full and undivided attention. "On a scale of about one to Armageddon, how bad is someone like Klarion having the stone?"

Gwen heard about Harry's past struggles with the chaos lord. She wanted full disclosure to be honest.

Harry sighed and that wasn't a good sigh. It wasn't a sigh of relief. "Well, let's just put things this way. He's a pain without the stone. What he can summon with the stone is a bad thing."

"He hasn't tried anything yet, though?"

"That much power is numbing to a person's plans," Harry told her. The frown on his face deepened to the point where someone might expect it to be a permanent fixture. "Even someone like Klarion, he doesn't know what he's going to do."

"Do you think that the Unholy Trinity could even screw him over?" Gwen suggested to Harry.

Harry frowned in response. "Things are not always as they seem, especially with someone like Klarion."

Harry's cryptic response was extremely cryptic. He needed to look around to make sure there were no nasty traps. Klarion had been watching him at various points of time this evening.

It was almost like he was using Harry's work to lead himself towards the Hallows. Harry frowned deeply. He could use that to his advantage if he played his cards completely right. That's what he hoped that he could do.

"Harry, are you with me?" Gwen asked him.

Harry didn't mean to ignore Gwen. It just accidentally happened when he was deep in thought for some reason.

"Yeah, Gwen, I'm with you, just thinking out loud," Harry said.

Gwen smiled despite herself. "I know how you are better than anyone else. You're setting some kind of trap for him, aren't you?"

"Some kind of trap….yes," Harry muttered. He realized that these Wraiths weren't moving in any way whatsoever.

He thought for sure that they would stir to life when he did something. Harry didn't stir them up in any way.

"Has your bad luck finally left you alone?" Gwen asked him.

"I don't want to jinx it," Harry said. His eyes never left the wraiths. "Klarion has the stone, I have the cloak, and there's the wand."

"The wand's the worst of them all," Gwen said. She didn't even need to ask what would happen should Klarion get his hands on the wand. It was something that was assumed and what she assumed was the end of everything. "I can't believe so much blood got shed over a stupid stick."

"You and I both Gwen, you and I both," Harry commented with a subtle sigh. That was the problem. He hated this entire circle of the Hallows. It was a legend that over the centuries destroyed many lives.

The people who were after the Unholy Trinity for unsavory reasons, they deserved everything that they got. They went after artifacts as a quick fix. They could barely handle a standard wand. This over the top wand was something else entirely.

"Do you even think that the Hallows will give them mastery of death like the legends?" Gwen asked him.

"You want me honest opinion on this, don't you?" Harry asked.

"Yes, I want your honest opinion on this," Gwen admitted to him. She wondered if she would like the answer that she would get.

Harry finished off, making his way around the temple.

"I believe anything is possible," Harry admitted to her. "If I'm skeptical for this one thing, then I have to be skeptical about all of the insane things that I did see and I know to be true. But that doesn't matter right now because I have to find him. And Klarion's pretty good at covering his tracks."

"Just like you're pretty good at covering yours," Gwen commented with a smirk on her face. "What's next?"

"I've got to check up on some things at the Fortress," Harry said. "And then I'll conclude the final hunt for the Wand."

Harry disappeared from the hallway and made his way to the Fortress.

'_I hope that Faora's progress is as it should be,' _Harry thought. The injuries she sustained, Harry wished that he punished D'Ken with something more brutal. He was at a loss of what it would be. The Phantom Zone was a fate worse than death for someone like him.

His mind drifted to other things. He hoped that Claire and Faora would have gotten along nicely. Their two houses had some issues in the past. Most of them had to do with Zod's perceived betrayal of Jor-El, about being unable to resurrect his son.

Funnily enough, Harry put two and two together and he was here right now.

"Entering," Harry said.

"Welcome back Harry," Lara said. "I was just about to have Claire retrieve you but I can see that there's no need to do so."

"Thank you for the thought, Lara," Harry said. He proceeded to walk into the Fortress in amusement. "And yes, I wish to check up on both of the girls to make sure they're getting along."

"Don't worry, Har, they're getting along really great," Lara said.

Perhaps it was Harry's imagination but there was something suggestive in Lara's voice about this. The green eyed young man walked into the Fortress. The first thing he saw would be Faora. She sat in the middle of the Fortress, stretching her legs.

"Har," Faora commented, turning and rising herself up. She took two steps forward and threw her arms around him.

The woman's lips planted against Harry's with a searing kiss on him. He decided to overpower her, something that barely happened with any man.

"I take it that you're feeling better," Harry remarked idly.

"Much better thank you," Faora commented. "I've got to say though, I want to see what Lara has to say before I consider myself one hundred percent."

There was something in Faora's voice that indicated that she thought that she was beneath such things. Harry stepped towards her with a smile on his face.

"Now, Faora, you know that Lara is an expert, she knows best," Harry told her.

"Yes, I believe you," Faora commented and Harry frowned at her. "I really believe you."

Faora decided to offer Harry a seat. The two of them sat down to next each other.

"So, how are you doing?" Faora asked.

Harry gave her a stern and a firm look. "I feel like I should be the one asking you that question."

"I'm fine as I said, but you seem like you've been working hard," Faora commented. She crossed her arms and stared at him. "Clara told me some of what you've been up to. You are the youngest Sorcerer Supreme in history."

"Kara mentioned that magic was a taboo subject on Krypton," Harry commented.

"Beautiful girl," Faora commented wistfully when she thought of Kara. Harry's eyes directed towards hers. "But yes, she was correct to say that magic was a taboo subject on Krypton. It was right up there with natural pregnancies. I'm sure Lara explained that to you all though."

"She has," Harry commented to her.

"I figured as much," Faora told him. "Therefore we shouldn't go down old grounds."

"Indeed, but I have the results of your final physical," Lara said with a smile.

Faora sat up straight along with Harry. She looked excited to hear this news. The dark haired girl looked absolutely giddy with some level of anticipation.

"Well, don't let me in the dark because of this then," Faora commented.

Lara smiled at her. "You are completely one hundred percent. Soon your powers will grow at the rate that they should be."

"I'll help you learn your powers," Harry told her.

"You're too kind, I'm sure that I could use a refresher," Faora commented. "It's a long time since I've been through basic training. And there's something else that has been a long time coming."

Claire made her way out of the bedroom at this moment. Harry's eyes shifted towards her. She barely was able to stand up straight. His eyes turned towards Faora.

"What?" Faora asked her. "We were bonding."

"I can tell that," Harry said with a sigh. He had a few ideas of what he could do with these girls. He was going to have his fun with them. "But I think that we need a discussion on some ground rules."

"Of course," Faora said. A wicked grin crossed her face. "I wouldn't dare deny you."

"Yes, I think it would be good if you kneel before him," Claire said to her.

Faora obeyed, it was obvious that Claire was going to get some revenge on her now. And she grew excited by this.

* * *

><p>Kara allowed herself some downtime when she soaked in the sun's rays. Harry would be meeting her along with Jean in a little bit.<p>

The first person was here in a matter of seconds. The blonde looked up and saw Jean sitting there in front of her.

"So, you're getting the hang of your powers, aren't you?" Kara asked.

"I could ask the same about you," Jean commented. She stared at Kara with a wicked grin. "And I can see that you're really taking advantage of this entire yellow solar radiation thing by soaking in some rays."

Jean shook her head in response when she saw Kara get to her feet. She did not have a single stitch of clothing on her when she stood up to face Jean. She didn't really bat an eyelash of it.

"It's not anything that you haven't seen," Kara commented to her. She tried to psyche Jean out. Jean wasn't phased by this. It was almost like she read Kara's mind and knew what her intentions were.

"No, it isn't," Jean agreed with her. It was something she enjoyed seeing, therefore there was no reason to be upset by it. "And I guess you're taking the theory that yellow solar radiation is easier to soak in when you don't have clothing in the way."

"I think that my flight is a bit better," Kara said. She wanted to look on the sunny side of life. Others might in face disagree with her optimistic attitude. Kara wasn't one of them who would however.

"As long as there's not a surprise airplane in the way," Jean commented to her. Kara gave her a mock look of rage. The redhead simply reached forward and patted Kara on the shoulder. "Don't worry, honey, you're doing great otherwise."

"Yeah, I'm glad that you're thinking that I'm doing great," Kara offered her with a frown.

She had some thoughts that she didn't hit the level that she wanted to. Harry warned her that Rome wasn't built in a day. Neither was Kandor, even though they should have plenty of experience with the number of times that Kandor was destroyed and completely decimated for the entire world to see.

"You're doing well, if you heard all of the horror stories regarding my powers….." Jean said. She trailed off, shuddering in response when she was about ready to say anything. "Well you were there."

Kara decided that her sun bathing was over. She pulled on her clothes. She also reached over to the watch that Harry gave her for training. It could filter in red sunlight or turn sunlight on other planets to yellow depending on the situation she was in.

"Harry should be arriving at any second," Kara said, impatient.

Jean raised her eyebrow. "You know that he'll be here when he gets here."

"Yeah, I know, but can you blame me for being excited?" Kara asked her. Jean laughed in amusement. "I'm going to take that as you don't blame me at all."

"Well, you're passionate about something. That's a good thing. Channel that passion and you should be able to move the world my dear treasure."

He was there just as soon as they mentioned it. It was almost like their talk of him summoned him. Kara wouldn't be surprised if they did.

"Sorry I was late," Harry said. Both girls greeted him fairly anxiously. "You know I've been going all around and I made sure that Claire and Faora were getting along."

Jean had some sense of where this was going. Her eyebrow corked in a manner that indicated that something was up there. "Are they getting along?"

"About as well as you and Emma did when you finally buried the hatchet," Harry commented to her.

Jean recalled what he was driving about that, since that was quite recently. The last few weeks had been a blur. The six weeks after she unlocked her Phoenix powers had been one thing after another.

"Oh, do tell me of this," Kara said. She wanted details and she wanted plenty of them. She could barely hold back her excitement.

"Maybe at another time, or do you want to tell the full story of how you bonded with your cousin?" Harry asked Kara.

Kara didn't seem to be too disturbed by this statement. She opened her mouth. Harry cut her off with a searing kiss.

"Anything on the Sorcerer Supreme front that we should know," Jean said, snickering when Harry finally pulled himself away from Kara.

"Plenty on the Sorcerer Supreme front as you should know," Harry told her. Jean waited to see what Harry would have to tell her. "But I'll give you a few brief notes about what's been going on."

Jean raised her eyebrow. "Do tell?"

Harry told her and explained it to her the best that he knew. Jean and Kara listened. Both of the girls held off on giving their feedback until Harry was done.

"So that was the bitch boy that you were telling me about," Jean commented. This simple statement caused Kara to break out into laughter.

Harry gave Kara a firm look and pinched her ass. She wasn't sorry about that but she felt that she should apologize. "Yeah, I'm sorry but….."

"He doesn't like being called such," Harry told her.

Kara got that message loud and clear. "Which is why you're going to keep calling him that until he gets sick of it, aren't you?"

"Oh I think that the idea was that he was already sick and tired of it, honey," Jean said, placing her hand against Kara's hair. She slowly stroked the blonde's hair. "Are the two of you ready to go?"

"I can't really move until I isolate the Elder Wand," Harry said. "And I'm coming up close on that."

"Where do you think it is?" Kara asked.

Harry spoke clearly so there was no mistake. "It's buried with Albus Dumbledore, I believe that his tomb is at Hogwarts. That's what my latest intelligence says."

"And you'd prefer not to dance over that minefield as soon as possible," Jean said, understanding. "What would happen if Klarion got his hands on the wand?"

"Trouble, loads of trouble, I'm pretty sure that he would have power to wreck all of reality and fulfill all of his desires," Harry said. He chuckled in amusement. "But I don't think that smug little bastard has the guts to violate a tomb with so many protections. They were crafted by goblins you know and we know that our little Chaos Lord doesn't have the balls to go against goblin based enchantments."

Jean caught onto what he was saying. "He doesn't seem like anyone who could do anything worth a damn anyway. Every time you've fought him, you've curb stomped his smug little ass."

Kara smiled and knew what game Harry played now. "And even if he had the wand, I doubt he would be able to use it properly. Besides, aren't wands compensating for something?"

Jean and Harry nodded simultaneously.

"But I'm sure that tonight I can make a play for the Wand, because it's obvious he's not going to move towards it," Harry said to both girls. "Are both of you ready to head off to New York?"

"We should be back for tonight, that's when you're introducing Faora to the girls," Kara reminded Harry.

"Haven't forgotten, we should have plenty of time," Harry said. He also needed to check up on his apprentice, but her lessons ran smoothly. It made him confident that he wouldn't have to devote all of his time to being the Sorcerer Supreme for that long. That was something that just had to make him smile. Although he would have plenty of responsibilities even with an assistant; Harry knew that much.

"Yes, I agree," Jean commented. "Don't worry about it, Kara, we'll be back with plenty of time to spare."

Kara didn't worry about it. She looked forward to Lois and Faora meeting. That would be interesting for any number of reasons. She almost pitied her cousin about this arrangement. It would be an interesting test of character.

"So we're flying?" Kara asked her.

"It's the only way to travel," Jean commented and Harry was on board with that completely.

The three of them went into the air and they were up, up, and away.

* * *

><p>Ororo Munroe thought that these quiet moments was a time to reflect. Six weeks ago it happened, six weeks Jean went off with her Phoenix force powers. She wasn't going to say who was right, who was wrong. All she was going to say was that there were severe ramifications.<p>

She was second in command behind Scott as being the Leader of the X-Men. Scott was currently in the infirmary of the Xavier Institute. He either wasn't going to wake up or didn't want to wake up.

'_As for Charles, well that's Charles,' _Ororo thought. It was sad that he was trapped as a prisoner of his own mind. He would escape one day.

"Harry should be here at any moment," Kitty said, she looked like she was about to burst in excitement.

"Calm down, Kitty, before you wet yourself," Rogue commented to her.

Kitty tried to slug Rogue but she moved out of the way.

"I'm sure that he'll be here at any second," Ororo said. She was looking forward to seeing Harry again. "Although we did see him about a week ago."

"Yeah that was a week ago, when the Shi'ar invaded and there was that mess with Lobo, well it wasn't in that order," Kitty said. She was babbling extremely madly to the point of insanity. "And now, there are all these new recruits that are coming in."

"And you're worried that Harry won't have a chance to properly welcome them," Rogue said to Kitty in amusement. "I don't even need to tell you that he left the X-Men for a good reason."

"Yeah, but I figured, you know for old time's sake and stuff," Kitty commented.

"You know, I might have to."

Kitty nearly jumped out of her chair. It was a good thing that Jean was able to catch her before she fell completely over. The redhead's eyes flashed with the typical amusement.

"You know, I still think that after all of this time, you get off in terrifying girls half to death," Kitty said. Her eyes locked onto Harry and she frowned, slapping her hands on her hips.

"I think what Kitty means, is that it's good to see you, again, even if it's been only a week," Rogue said. "But I suppose that the girl has a point, a week can be a long time."

"When you consider that I've been bouncing over various dimensions, it's been an extremely long time for me," Harry told her.

"True, completely and totally true," Kitty said, her voice bubbling over in excitement. "But how are you doing?"

"About as well as could be expected," Harry said, sitting down next to Jean and Kara. "Actually I've been racing an extremely powerful enemy for three objects that can destroy the world."

"So it's business as usual for you," Rogue said.

"Aren't you worried?" Kitty asked her.

"You know I don't do worried at all, Kitty," Harry said.

"Yeah, I know that," Kitty said with a sigh. That was the one great thing about Harry. He always managed to be cool underneath the face of sudden fire. "But you have to admit that this is completely a different thing than your usual thing. You know that, I know that, and…"

"She's always this hyperactive, isn't she?" Kara asked. She could see Jean raise her eyebrow. "Not that I have any room to talk but I have all of these super powers and…"

"She is, but that's Kitty," Rogue commented and Kitty scowled at her. Rogue lifted her hand and lightly patted Kitty on the back of the neck. Her gloved hand touched her. "But we wouldn't have it any other way."

Kitty wasn't going to say that she wasn't pleased by that.

The banter was amusing but Harry had some important business to talk about.

"How are you doing running things at the Institute?" Harry asked Ororo.

"Things are going fairly smoothly," Ororo said. Things could have been better, she wasn't going to deny that. Things could have been far worse than they were as well. "I'm not going to lie, we've got a lot of rebuilding to do."

"I've done all that I can to pretty much counter all of the anti-mutant politicians in Washington," Harry said.

"You did a lot," Ororo said to her. "You removed their teeth, and they're hot air."

"Aren't they always hot air because of the fact that they're politicians?" Kitty asked them. "I'm just saying, that's all."

"She's right, she has a point," Jean said with a sigh. Kara raised her eyebrow. "Do politicians vary much the universe over?"

"Yes, politicians vary little the universe over," Kara admitted. "You know they might be far worse on Krypton than they were on Earth."

"For now at least," Harry warned her.

"I find that completely hard to believe," Rogue said and Harry gave her one of those looks of warning. "But I believe you."

"So, Kitty mentioned that you have some new recruits?" Harry asked, abruptly switching subjects. He didn't want to talk about politics. It was a subject that was enough to cause anyone to have nausea.

"Yes, new recruits," Ororo agreed. "And most of them are of female. Some of them are on the fence."

"We were hoping that you would work some of the old Harry Potter charm….." Kitty said, yelping because Rogue pinched her. She gave the Southern Belle a cross look. "Actually we were kind of…..well we were kind of hoping that you would help us, and stuff. If you want to, we'd understand if you…..well would you help us?"

Kitty's babbling was completely adorable. The young man raised his eyebrow when he looked towards Kitty.

"You know, I might have to put aside some time for old time's sake," Harry said to her. Kitty completely beamed at him.

Ororo was far more composed that that, although she would be lying if she said that she wasn't happy. "It's much appreciated."

"My time on this team was appreciated even if my parting was of a less of ideal ways," Harry said to her.

"I understand," Ororo said. "But we all still appreciate that you're able to help out."

"Yeah, that just proves how awesome you are," Kitty said in a bubbly voice.

"But you know that goes without saying," Jean said and Kitty nodded. "Harry can back up his….well his awesomeness when the opportunity arrises."

"You know, if keep talking to me about that, my head won't be able to fit through the front door," Harry said to both of them.

"It would match another part of you," Kara said. That caused Kitty to choke on her drink.

Rogue casually patted her on the back in response. She leaned towards him. "So, is your new apprentice who I think it is?"

"Well, yes, and I'm meeting her after I get done here, to check up to see how she's doing," Harry said. Rogue smiled and there was an obvious indication that she wanted to know more.

'_This really is going to stir up the entire mutant pecking order thing,' _Jean thought him. _'I don't know why I'm just coming to this conclusion right now about all of this stuff.'_

'_Yeah, I don't know why you would be either, but it's happening,' _Harry thought.

He spent the next hour catching up. This would prove to be an extremely busy day for Harry.

* * *

><p>Claire and Faora arrived at the Kent Farmhouse. They finished up at the Fortress, with Lara giving Faora one more examination.<p>

"I just think that your mother enjoys me being naked," Faora commented. Claire turned towards her with a raised eyebrow. "Not that I mind, and I'm sure that if she was anything like you, she looks equally as good."

Claire saw Lois and Chloe making their way up the way.

"Claire, there you are, we've been looking all over for you," Chloe commented, stepping towards her. She greeted her with a tight hug. "Is this….."

"Faora," Claire commented. "This is….."

"Lois Lane, Chloe Sullivan, and I'm surprised not to see Lana Lang here as well," Faora commented, greeting the girls. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Clara has told me so much about you."

Lois's face flashed into a look of suspicion. "What have you been telling her about us, Smallville?"

Claire patted her hand on the top of hers. "Nothing really bad Lois. Why do you have a guilty conscience?"

"Guilty conscience, I don't have a guilty conscience!" Lois said and Chloe barely kept a straight face. "Do you think that I have a guilty conscience?"

Chloe and Claire locked eyes, and laughed.

"Hello, sorry I'm late."

"Hey, Lana, no you weren't late, well not that much later than us," Claire commented to her. She greeted her friend with a tight hug and she kissed her

"That's good, speaking of late, where is….."

Lana stopped and nearly was taken completely off guard. Harry showed up next to all of them with a huge pop.

"I swear to god that you get off in giving women heart attacks by your sudden arrival," Lois said and there was amusement in the eyes of all of them. "But I suppose that someone has always told you that."

"Once or twice, I suppose," Harry said dryly.

"What, a day?" Chloe chimed in and Harry shifted his eyes towards her. "It's good to see you as well Harry."

"Same to you Chlo, same you to," Harry told her with a smile.

Faora looked over towards Claire. She could not be more pleased with the selections that she made.

"So, these were your recruits, weren't they?" Faora asked her. Claire looked at her. "You've done your duty to our house but you do have a debt of gratitude towards Har-Zod, don't you?"

"Yeah, she does pay that debt of gratitude every time that she kneels before him," Lois said and Claire's eyes shifted towards Lois.

"Oh, someone's going to get it later," Chloe said in a sing-song voice.

"Both of you are going to get it later if you don't be careful," Claire said and Lana smiled.

"Okay, ladies, behave, or none of you will get getting anything," Harry said and that caused all of them to open up their mouths. "Sorry…I'm running late…"

"But you just got here?" Lois asked and Harry raised his eyebrow. "Sorry, that's…..I didn't mean for it to sound so needy. You have a lot of important things to do, I understand, really and truthfully understand."

"I know you do, and I'll be back later, everyone stay safe, and…" Harry said and he leaned in. "Don't do anything too reckless, whatever you do."

"I guess that means that we shouldn't do anything that you do," Lois commented raising her eyebrow. She could see Harry gave her that eye.

"Get to know each other, I'll be back tonight, hopefully," Harry said.

Harry disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"Well, you sure live an interesting life," Faora said, smiling at Claire. "I wonder what your father would think about this?"

"Don't know, been dead for years, and there's only one man that I call Daddy and that's under special circumstances," Claire said, which caused Lana to laugh. "Not that you have any room to talk….any of you."

That shut up all three of the girls. Claire led Faora inside to meet her mother, with the rest of her group following inside.

She didn't really worry about Harry that much. She pretty much knew that he could handle anything.

He had a plan, she just hoped that it would turn out for the best.

* * *

><p>It was October 30th, just a little bit after midnight. Time was of the essence. The witch boy arrived with a pop outside of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.<p>

There hadn't been any classes here within the past five years. The civil war devastated the world and it would be an extremely long time before the built things together.

Klarion broke down the gates. There was some residual magic that kept the gates up.

"Closer," he whispered, excitement dancing in his voice. He slammed the gates down with a blast of energy coursing through his hands. "Even closer."

Klarion was almost to the tomb. He could see those pitiful protections.

"For the greatest wizard since Merlin, your protections are quite pitiful, I'd be rolling over in that grave," Klarion said.

"So, I guess we're both here for the same reason, aren't we?"

Klarion's eyes flashed over to focus on the Sorcerer Supreme standing in the shadows.

The protections around the tomb became more prominent.

"Do you fear what I can do to you now?" Harry asked to him.

"No, it's you who should fear what I can do to you," the Lord of Chaos said in a thunderous voice. "Step away from the zone, and I may…"

"Not monologue me to death?" Harry asked and he sent a blast of light towards Klarion.

Klarion flashed out of the way from behind him.

"If you insist of being disrespectful, then I suppose that I'm going to have to teach you a lesson," Klarion said and he slipped the stone into his hand. "The wand's mine, and I'll do my victory dance over your corpse!"

There was a flash of light. Harry wasn't sure what powers the stone was going to do. He tried to blast it out of Klarion's hand but the stone blocked his spell.

"The stone's grown rather attached to me, Sorcerer. Unlike your head to your body."

* * *

><p><strong>To Be Continued On November 15<strong>**th****, 2014. **

**And now we're heading towards the final chapters of this story. Klarion makes is play for the Unholy Trinity. **

**There was also some good character interaction. **


	22. Artifacts of Death

**Chapter Twenty-Two: Artifacts of Death.**

* * *

><p>It took Harry only a few seconds to realize that Klarion had been practicing his evil laugh. Thankfully though he didn't have the monologues warmed up to bore him to death with. At least he didn't have them warmed up yet.<p>

Harry could see smell the decay and the death forming a nasty cloud around him. It was obvious that Klarion was able to summon something. His half ass summoning trick caused something to tear open. A vortex opened up above the school. Hogwarts had what Harry liked to refer to as unstable magic. You throw in an added element, things changed.

In other words, some shit got stirred up and Klarion cackled about it. Harry wanted to rip his head off. He somehow held himself off from doing it, even though no one would blame it.

"You see the power that I have, you don't…"

Harry sent a bolt of light at him. The witch boy flew head over heels and smacked into the ground.

"You speak way too much and way too loudly," Harry said. He didn't want to waste time playing tag with this pathetic excuse for a sorcerer. He had other things that he wanted to do.

He could tell that these creatures he summoned could destroy the world if given half of the chance. The good news is that he hadn't completely summoned him. Whether it was through completely lack of understanding of the stone or the fact that Harry stopped him, he didn't know.

He didn't really care quite frankly. He channeled power through his hands and sealed the portal shut. Harry's knees knocked together when he tried to push the portal shut. Sweat poured down his forehead and he took a deep breath.

The portal shut itself completely. That was the first good news that Harry had in a while. His hands burned like hell. Other than that he felt fine. That was a good sign as far as he was concerned.

Harry hoped that he would continue to keep feeling fine. He scanned the world and hoped that Klarion's stone play didn't cause any further problems. That might have been too much to hope for but Harry could dream.

Something rumbled out from underneath the ground. Harry could see the illusion fade around him that he put up. Klarion must have known that he feinted him and the witch boy wasn't happy.

"You think that you're clever because you put up some parlor trip and moved Hogwarts somewhere else!"

"Oh, I moved the actual physical castle and the grounds somewhere else, but the magic lingers, believe me," Harry said. Sweat rolled down his brow which was rare. It just reminded him what was on the line.

The world around him started to crack. It was like a ripple effect in the sky. One pebble, in this case Klarion's spell, caused the world to come undone. Harry waited for the after effects.

"I hope you have fun dealing with my friends when I get my wand!" Klarion yelled.

Harry couldn't help but smile despite the grim situation. Klarion really had no sense at all. His chaotic insanity screwed him over way too many times. And now if he thought that the power of the Trinity would behave and do what he wanted to, he was a fool.

The light flashed around him. That left Harry alone to play tag with these creatures that rose up around him.

His ear piece cackled in his ear so he wouldn't be able to relay instructions that way. Fortunately, Harry knew that the mental link wasn't down.

It was harder to concentrate with this chaotic magic lingering through the air. Harry closed his eyes and locked on.

'_Jean….' _Harry thought, reaching out to the first mind that he could find.

'_Let me guess, everything's becoming undone where you are too, isn't it?' _Jean thought to him. Harry could see flashes of an immense battle happening around her. It was just as bad, perhaps a little bit less, where she was. He was glad that he didn't have to worry about Jean. _'I know, it's hard to believe it, but whatever Klarion did…..please tell me he didn't get his hands on the wand.'_

'_Impossible to do,' _Harry thought to her. _'Just make sure to get everything in order. We have a plan for this particular scenario.'_

'_Don't you have a plan for everything?' _Gwen asked, suiting up with the heavy stuff. _'I mean you're Harry Fucking Potter, and crazy prepared is kind of what you do, you know?'_

Harry smiled even though he didn't say a word. There were some things that went without saying. His green eyes flashed when he looked up at the creatures.

They were completely foul and ill tempered. All of them attempted to dive bomb Harry at once.

His green eyes stared up at them. He deflected all of their attacks. These shadow wraiths attacked him two or three at a time. All of them intended to wipe him out just like that.

The green eyed sorcerer blasted several of the shadow demons down to the ground. He knew that Klarion was on his way to the real tomb. Pretty much everything was going as planned and that was the way that Harry liked it.

Another portal cracked open above his head. Harry made a mental correction that most of everything went as planned. There was room for improvement.

* * *

><p>Gwen Stacy gave a sigh that went through her body. It was just like her to put herself into a situation like this. She owed a lot to Harry, so she couldn't complain. Most frustratingly, Gwen could see that Harry had a way of talking her into things that might not have been in her best interest. Not that she wasn't capable of doing things that weren't in her best interest on her own accord, thank you very much.<p>

Plus when the world was in peril, she couldn't just sit down and not pay attention to anything.

"I'm almost there, if any of you can hear me," Gwen commented. She could see a blur come up from her left side. A second blur came up on her from her right side. Both of them stopped next to Gwen. One blur was blonde and the other had dark hair. "And I'm guessing that you can hear me now."

Kara gave a mock salute. "Yeah, I can hear you, loud and clear."

For once, Smallville was actually as it should be. It was calm and it was tranquil without any trouble in the air. So naturally it was then where Claire figured that something might be up. The dark haired girl craned her head up, looking up in the sky. She neither saw a bird nor a plane hovering up there.

"Portal opening," Gwen said above her head. "Did Harry tell you that ninety nine times out of one hundred, a portal opening means that there are some really bad things coming through?"

"Yes," Kara and Claire chanted in unison.

The portal lingered open. There was a loud growl of something breaking through.

"The good news is that whatever's in there might be too large to go through the portal," Gwen said, raising her hand and scanning the edge of the creature. "The bad news is that other things can come through that portal."

Claire focused her X-Ray vision on the portal. Harry taught her a few things about how to detect magical enchantments and trickery. Even though she didn't have a drop of magic in her blood, she still had an eye for things thanks to Harry's tutoring.

"We've got to figure out a way to close that portal," Claire said.

"That's a good idea, but we need to find the origin point of the portal."

Lily showed up behind the trio of girls in an unexpected manner. It caused all three of them to jump up and take notice of the redhead that came up from behind them.

"Well at least we know where Harry gets it from," Kara commented without missing a beat. "Do you think that you can find the origin point and close the portal?"

"Yes, but we got to worry about what comes through the portal…..in the meantime," Lily said, her words trailing off when she saw what was coming through the portal. She also knew that she didn't like what was coming through that portal. She never liked what was coming out of the portal.

A loud round of pops echoed when several winged creatures came through the portal. Kara was about ready to get up to engage them but Gwen grabbed her arm.

"You're just as bad as your cousin sometimes, I swear," Gwen whispered harshly, shaking her head. Kara cast Gwen one of those looks and was about ready to ask how she was as bad as Claire was.

She never had any chance to do so. One of the creatures dove down and attacked some unsuspecting civilians.

It latched it's talons down onto the shoulder of the civilian. The man screamed and it was turned to stone. All of the life force was sucked out of him.

"Okay, don't let these things fucking touch you!" Lily yelled, shouting to both the SHIELD agents and the heroines on the ground.

"You don't have to tell us twice!" Kara yelled and she could see another blur show up.

Several bright purple lights impacted the chest of the creatures. There was a sonic scream and they blasted through the portals. The shower of blood and guts splattered to the ground.

A woman dressed in a skin tight black suit with a red symbol placed on her chest that was shaped like a U turned up. She craned her neck backwards and she blasted more of the creatures through the portal.

"Keep the people out of the way!" Faora yelled when she turned around.

"Okay, I'll…" Gwen commented. She took a second to clear her head, she had been checking out this woman in a tight costume. "What do you call yourself again?"

"You may call me Ultrawoman," she said in a bold voice and Kara raised her hand.

"Guess that works better than the Blur," Kara said and Claire sighed.

"Guess that works better than Blurette," Claire commented to Kara and the blonde crossed her arms.

"You could stop with the banter, as amusing as it is," Lily commented firmly. Claire shook her head to return herself back to reality.

Lily held up the large energy cannon. She placed her hand on the trigger and channeled the magical energy through it. The cannon glowed and there was a huge blast of super powered energy that came through it.

There was a hideous winged creature that nearly broke through the portal. Lily slammed the energy blast into the creature. It started to rattle on the other side of the portal.

There was a moment where all of them rested. SHIELD was on the ground, a bit late to the party.

Lily looked up, her mouth open.

'_The portals appear to be closing, at least for now,' _Lily thought. There was nothing left but this eerie and unsettling wind.

It kept blowing over the top of her head. The redhead turned to Carol who showed up.

"Some people just don't know when to run," Carol said and she looked over her shoulder where the Avengers gathered up the stone statues of the people who remained. "Do you think that there is any way to restore them back to normal?"

Lily gave a grim smile. "There's always a way. I was hoping with the destruction of the demons, their life energy would return."

Carol frowned, that did make a lot of sense. Then again, as Lily and Harry both told her, you had to stop thinking about things that made sense whenever magic was involved. Magic was not like science. Unless you didn't understand science, then magic was exactly like science.

"We're just going to have to gather up the people and hope to find a way to reverse the curse," Carol said.

"And it just show happens that your friendly neighborhood pick up crew is here."

Iron Man turned up. His armor still hummed from the fact that one of those creatures nearly got his hands on him.

"All of the times I upgraded this armor, it was finally bound to pay…."

There was another loud bang from up above. The group's eyes looked up and saw what was coming out of the portal.

"And now I think that I've had about one upgrade too few," Iron Man said and he watched the creatures swarm around her.

"It makes the creatures in the Phantom Zone look like fluffy animals," Faora said and Claire gasped.

"You're right," Claire said and Kara folded her arms.

"Wait a minute, when in the name of Rao when you were in the Phantom Zone?"

That question would have to be answered in another way. Lily held the cannon up. It packed a punch and also amplified the simplest blasting spells by about a hundred times if she chose to.

It was the Evans family motto that there was no kill like overkill.

* * *

><p>The battle raged on and Lily somehow found herself elsewhere. She tried and get in touch with her son. There was only one problem, she couldn't get through with him.<p>

Lily knew that her son could handle himself. That was something that she never had to worry about as a mother. That didn't make all of the dangerous situations that he got himself into any more easily. The moment that he was handpicked to be the next Sorcerer Supreme, Lily knew that Harry was destined for great things.

She couldn't help but be worried because Harry was her son and far more. That was neither here nor there though and that was private business.

A loud rush of energy erupted above the top of her head. Lily twitched her fingers together and looked high above. It was going to be one of those long days she had a feeling.

Hideous Dementor like creatures swirled in the air. They didn't have the robes on and Lily could see their faces. She really wished that she hadn't. There was no life, no so, no anything. They might have been worse than the creatures that have been spawned.

She could hear some low rattling cries in a language that she could not comprehend.

'_It might be far worse if I did understand them,' _Lily thought anxiously to herself.

The Dementor like creatures dove towards the ground. Their hands and their fingers outstretched when they tried to go after her. They seemed intent to snatch her up and suck her soul out.

The witch aimed her energy cannon not knowing if that would work. She had to try.

Lily pulled the trigger of the cannon and she launched a big blast. A whirling blast fired through the air. It impacted the creatures hard.

She waited nervously. There was something that was happening in the air.

The creatures dove at her in an attempt to attack her.

Several hex bolts of energy fired out of nowhere. The creatures wilted underneath the attack. Lily smiled when she saw the creatures disappear and she hoped that it hurt of them. What better way was to beat chaos, with chaos?

Lily saw Harry's apprentice turn up. The woman had no chance to thank this apprentice because she was gone essentially as quickly as she appeared.

Was Lily completely out of the woods yet? No, she could see more of those winged creatures dive from the portal.

The creatures stopped seconds away from attacking Lily. It was almost like slowed down.

Lily looked around and could see the signs of battle that had been frozen around her. She kept watching and wondered exactly what the hell was going on.

There was no denying it that Lily Evans had seen some extremely weird things in her day. This might have been the type of weird that topped it all.

The creatures that were seconds away from causing her to be ripped apart were frozen in place. The heroes who fought the creatures were frozen in place.

Lily knew that she was capable of some pretty powerful magic when she was stressed. There were only two problems regarding this. The first problem was that she didn't do this level of extremely powerful accidental magic past the time that she was eleven years old. She did it all of the time, caused dishes to break because Petunia annoyed her. She also had a lot of mishaps regarding fire that made her parents send her to a therapist because they thought that she was starting fires.

She was, although not the way that her parents thought that she was. That was beside the point. It brought Lily around to the next point

She was never capable of freezing time to a standstill. She was extremely powerful but she was not reality warping omniscient. The redhead clapped her hands together.

She closed her eyes. Even if she didn't do this, she hoped that she could find some way to undo it.

Suddenly in a flash of light, everything came back to life. Lily felt a growing warmth ripple through her body. The redhead almost dropped to her knees with a shudder.

"Okay, is everyone okay?" Lily asked.

Lily looked up and there was nothing there. The magic faded away in the air. She almost expected some kind of portal to crack open any second now.

"Yeah, we're all okay, although I wonder what the hell happened," Carol commented lightly. "It seems like a lot of time passed but the next time I blinked, they were gone."

"Time passed, you did blink, but it was about twenty minutes later," Lily said with a frown. "I'd try and explain it, but you know, magic, it happens."

"Say no more," Gwen whispered, shaking her head. "Have any of you got in touch with Harry?"

"No," Kara said and she seemed nervous. "Does he normally disappear off of the grid for a long time like this?"

"Yes," Gwen confirmed. "Jean, have you had any luck?"

"I haven't been able to reach him since he gave us the instructions," Jean said. There was no indication that Harry was completely fine. There was also no indication that he was in any danger. With Harry, the only thing that was for sure is nothing is for sure. "But I'm more worried about the fact that we're in the calm before the storm."

"Everyone take a breath while you can," Lily said in a nervous voice.

She looked up and wondered what was happening. There had to be some divine intervention to pull those creatures back to where they came from. There was only one person who could pull off that level of divine intervention. If Lily was right, and there was no indication that she wasn't either.

"I don't know how long that will be," Gwen said. She took a moment to repair the damage made to the Iron Spider armor. "I'd feel a lot better if I knew where the hell Harry was."

"That might be closer than you think knowing Harry's luck," Jean commented and she hoped that she was completely wrong about that.

"Oh, please don't tell me…"

Lily showed up and saw what could be classified as a miracle. She wasn't the spiritual type but she could only tell people what she saw with her own eyes.

The people who were encased in stone returned back to their physical forms. It was something that blew Lily's mind completely.

She figured that a pretty divine hand was in this one. The ultimate divine hand was in this one.

"So, I guess that we can cancel our attempts to figure out a way to restore them back to life," Carol said. She frowned. "They're still in shock."

"They would be in shock, trust me, it's not pleasant to be turned into stone," Lily commented, her shoulders shrugging when she spoke. That caused Carol to look at her, in surprise with a raised eyebrow.

"Exactly what do you know about being turned to stone?"

Lily sighed, that was a long story in itself. One that she didn't really have that much time to tell it. There was a sense that they had only been bought some time but not much.

It was down to Harry. It was always down to Harry.

* * *

><p>Harry Potter felt himself torn between two worlds. Klarion's use of the stone caused a more predictable reaction to reality than he thought. He doubted that even Klarion would have the imagination to figure out what he did.<p>

'_Great, that wicked little bastard might have just broken time,' _Harry thought to himself.

This was the type of thing that he had been trained to deal with as the Sorcerer Supreme. The grand scale warping of all of reality might be on the high end of all of the potential crisis scenarios him and Strange thought about. Harry grimaced when he thought about some of the potential scenarios that he went over. He held his hand up and decided to stop time completely.

Time could only be stopped for him to fix it. For some people, they might be able to see how time stopped. It depended on their proximity and their power as well. Harry wasn't sure exactly how it worked completely. All that he was sure of was that he had to change things to fix it.

He could see the portals opening all around the world. Some of these creatures were a nasty piece of work. Not only did he have to return them back but he had to figure out a way to reverse them being turned into stone.

'_Not a sweat,' _Harry thought to himself. He closed his eyes and shook his head. _'Okay it might not be a sweat, but it is very frustrating, extremely frustrating.'_

There was a loud ringing sensation that spread through Harry's ears. He could see where Klarion split reality. It was not a tear that could be easily fixed by just going over it. Harry had to go in deep and manually fix the tear.

This might not be enough to kill him.

'_It can't kill me, at least I don't think,' _Harry thought, channeling his full powers. _'But you'd really be surprised with what you can live through.'_

His hands locked onto the edge of the portal. He channeled his energy, multiplying himself into at least a dozen copies. Each of them had a different job in sewing up the portal.

He screamed at the top of his lungs when his hands burned. The green eyed young man dropped down to the ground. His breathing concluded and he shook his head.

'_Okay, it hasn't killed me, but again, you'd be surprised what you can live through,' _Harry thought. He might have repeated his past point but it was important to drive certain points home.

He closed all of the warps in reality. The next thing that he had to do was restore the people that were turned to stone. He channeled himself and pulled the orbs of the stolen energy force out of the portals.

Harry fired them back into the environment. He watched when the men, women, and children slowly returned to life. They were in shock.

He took a moment to catch his breath. He couldn't spare any more than a moment though. Harry placed his hands on either side of the wall and pushed it open. There was a bolt of energy when he shot through the portal.

He was back on the Hogwarts grounds and he could see the enchantments fall like dominoes. Now it was the moment of truth. Harry had to bait the trap,

Harry could feel himself disconnect from the rest of reality. That was never a good side.

He also felt something else rise up. There was something beyond Klarion that showed up in the distance. Harry Potter didn't really know what to expect now. One lesson he learned beyond all else was expect the unexpected.

* * *

><p>Klarion knew this time wasn't a trick, it wasn't an enchantment. He could see the Stone burned into his right hand and the wand would be burned into his right hand. His own chaotic magic blocked the ability of the stone to turn him into one of the guardians of it. It was barely holding him off.<p>

"Here lies Albus Dumbledore, a senile old man," Klarion said with a cackle. He showed the tomb no respect when he blasted it to pieces.

Klarion peered down into the tomb. He saw the decomposed remains of Albus Dumbledore. The one thing he didn't see was the wand of eternity. It wasn't there, at all.

Klarion pitched a fit and gave a hideous scream. His scream echoed for the entire world to hear.

"So, I take it you're having a bad day, aren't you, Klarion?"

He slowly turned his head around and spotted the one and only Harry Potter standing before him. The Sorcerer Supreme looked like the cat that ate the canary. He was completely and utterly smug.

"You…..You….YOU!" Klarion shouted and he tried to blow his enemy to smithereens.

Harry casually deflected his magic and knocked it back at Klarion, knocking the stone from his hand.

The stone cracked against the tomb and caused reality to split open once again.

"Give me the wand!" Klarion yelled. "I know that you have it!"

Harry could not believe that he was throwing a childish tantrum after all of this. His green eyes focused on the chaos bringer before him. He turned slowly to see reality continue to splinter.

He could see it flashing on the other side, the Dark Dimension could be seen.

"So, a new Sorcerer Supreme has been anointed, a pity that I didn't destroy Strange on my own!" a low and hideous voice echoed through the portal. "I'm not impressed though."

"You should see the tricks that I do at parties," Harry commented dryly. The look on Klarion's face was priceless.

It took a lot to rattle the chaos lord. This was one of those things that did. He looked like he mentally snapped.

"If you had just given me the wand, none of this would have happened!" Klarion shouted at the top of his lungs. The only thing that he got was a roll of the eyes from the one and only Sorcerer Supreme.

Harry would say that he couldn't believe this guy but he could completely and utterly believe this guy. He believed that this guy was completely and utterly nuts. He actually thought that might be the understatement of the century.

Klarion made a mad dash of the stone but the stone burst open, causing shadow creatures to erupt from it. They knocked Klarion back.

"You found the Trinity, very good, it will make me invincible," the dreaded one whispered. "You know the power that the ritual involving the Trinity gives you on All Hallow's Eve."

"Yeah, but hope you didn't get your hopes on acquiring that power, Dormmanu," Harry told him.

He could see the world engulfed in darkness and then brimstone and fire, or at least the Hogwarts grounds were.

Klarion realized that his power combined with that of the stone's screwed up reality so much that he didn't even want anything to do with it. His eyes widened. Slowly, swallowing a lump on his throat. "So…..how about we work together to take care of Dormmanu?"

Harry couldn't believe the gall of this guy after all that he was through. He did have a point in all of his insane babbling. If the Dreaded One got his hands on the Trinity, even two of them, everything as they knew it would be destroyed.

It was time for his first real trial as the new Sorcerer Supreme.

**To Be Continued on November 18****th**** 2014. **

* * *

><p><strong>So I think most people should put two and two together on who Harry's apprentice is, even though we won't see her on screen. <strong>

**So we get a hint about what could have happened to Dumbledore if Snape hadn't stopped the curse and later killed him. Or at least that's my dark and demented theory. **

**Klarion's tail tucked firmly between his legs when he asks Harry for help. **


	23. A Very Temporary Alliance

**Chapter Twenty-Three: A Very Temporary Alliance. **

* * *

><p>Harry Potter thought that this went without saying but he figured that he should repeat it again. He was in the midst of his toughest test during his extremely short time of the Sorcerer Supreme. He could see the witch boy make him an offer. A part of him didn't believe the gall of him but there was an even bigger part of him that did in face believe the gall of him.<p>

"Come on, the two of us could be destroyed, and his kind of chaos scares me!" Klarion begged him. "Don't you trust me?"

Harry spoke in a crisp and absolutely deadpan tone of voice. "Absolutely not!"

Klarion screamed when Harry banished him yet again. He doubted that it would keep. It never kept with someone like Klarion. He could dematerialize his particles and scatter him all over the universe. He would find a way to put himself back together after a couple of centuries. Harry would still be there and he would still be annoyed by him.

Harry turned his attention away from Klarion who vanished and to the very real Dormmanu. His laughter was completely insidious.

"For the love of all things holy, get it out of your system so I can kick your fiery ass," Harry said with a long sigh.

"What are you blabbing about?" Dormmanu asked him.

"Don't you know, actually I think that you know," Harry told him. "You know those monologues that all criminals enjoy to do. You are going to do one of those. And I'm going to be extremely annoyed by it. That's just the way things like that go. So get it out of your system."

Dormmanu's minions seemed tentative to go against Harry. Harry didn't really blame him. He completely and fully intended to kick their asses if they stepped one toe out of line.

"I don't think that you've seen the…"

"Yeah, I've changed my mind," Harry said, already bored out of his mind. He was on a schedule. He blasted him hard in the face and tried to knock him back. "I'm bored with you already. You're all just the same aren't you, ramble, ramble, ramble, don't you ever shut the fuck up?"

Harry dodged a flaming bolt of energy at him. Dormmanu tried to take him down.

"Really Door Mouse Guy, we're really going to go through this again," Harry said. "The thing about Stephen Strange is that he was good. He was very good. I'm pretty sure that in his prime, he was even better."

Harry sent a flash of light and collapsed Dormmanu's face. He screamed in agony. That attack actually felt like it hurt. That was his intention to make Dormmanu regret the very moment that he tried something against him.

"But I'm pretty good at what I do," Harry said and he smiled. "You could argue that I'm the best in the world at what I do, with all due respect to others who use that boast, I'm not someone who is going to fuck around with you."

Harry prepared to send him back into the Dark Dimension but there was only one problem.

"Oh, you're not on Earth, are you?" Harry asked him. "I should have known, the stone hit Dumbledore's enchanted tomb. It caused a chain reaction."

Harry pieced things together. Magic gave him a headache even though he mastered it. That being said, he figured out that Dormmanu tried to pull a fast one on him.

"That's almost clever, isn't it?" Harry asked. He stressed the word almost, giving it extra syllables on the way down. "You know, Dormmanu, I'd have to take my hat off to you…..or I would be if I was wearing one. That's really amazing. I'm so proud of you. I can't even begin to tell you how much."

Harry's voice sounded extremely dry when he spoke. It was almost like he was given the Dreaded One some sarcastic praise.

"Almost clever, but not quite clever…"

"It doesn't matter, for I will have the Trinity, and on all Hallow's Eve, everything will be destroyed!" Dormmanu yelled at the top of his lungs.

He brushed off the attacks of the lost ones that went after him. Harry hated these vaguely defined Phantom Shades.

"Now, give me the wand that you have."

Harry smiled. He wondered when Dormmanu figured out the game. The stone rested in a pile of ash on the ground. It was still hot so Harry wasn't going to try and touch it.

"You want the wand, Door Mouse Guy?" Harry taunted him. It was obvious that he more than intended to stir up his adversary.

"Give me the wand, and…"

Harry caused the ground to explode underneath them. There were choking particles of dust that filled the air around them.

"Let me guess, you'll make my ending a little less painful," Harry whispered, when he engaged his enemies in battle. "You want the Trinity, well you're going to have to take it from me."

Dormmanu's eyes glowed and his head flamed on. "Strange has taught you arrogance well, child."

Dormmanu shot forward and he impacted his enemy with an attack. He thought for a minute that the attack ripped the Sorcerer Supreme into a series of bloody chunks.

He only took the shot to set his enemy up for another shot. Both shots fired towards each other. The two of them clashed with each other.

The Dark Dimension flashed around them. The battle for the Trinity was on.

* * *

><p>The more she knew, the less Lily Evans understood. She thought that it was overdone. She tried to communicate with the rest of SHIELD. The only problem was that she couldn't access this communication channel. She tapped the buttons. Lily used a trick to override the network and move her way towards another frequency.<p>

Lily tapped her finger. "Hello, can anyone hear me?"

Lily grimaced, of course no one could hear her. The communication frequency was completely and totally blocked.

The world exploded around her. Lily thought that things would get insane really quickly. She held her magic cannon up, propping it up underneath her shoulder.

"If anyone could hear me, back up would be appreciated?" Lily asked. She could feel shivers blow down her spine. "You know, back up, would be really nice. Like now? Not ten minutes from now, but like now. Just think about it, if any of you can hear me."

Lily couldn't wait for people to come around. She saw a crack in the dimension again. The past four hours it was completely calm. Then Lily appeared on the other side of the barrier.

"Can you hear me, can you hear me now?" Faora's voice asked from the distance.

Lily could see Faora was on the other end of the barrier. She looked over her shoulder. There was a loud crack whip in the distance.

"Dark Dimension, great," Lily muttered underneath her breath.

Kara and Claire zipped off to the either side of her. Both of them landed on the ground.

"Oh, this is nice," Claire said. It was just about as bad as dying again.

It actually was much worse than dying come to think of it. The two Kryptonian cousins stepped forward to join Lily. Both of them stood on either side of her. It was almost like things got froze all over again.

"Please tell me that the two of you are here with me and I'm not frozen in time," Lily told them.

"Yeah, we're here, we're here," Kara commented. Her bright blue eyes followed their progress. "I've never fought dealt with anything this power. My magic is a bit…not functional right now."

"You mean you have the abilities?" Claire asked her.

"Kind of, although I never had a chance to complete the training when the magical school that I was in disappeared with Kandor," Kara said quickly without taking a breath. "But that's not the point."

Claire pulled Kara out of the way and one of the enemies nearly took her out.

"Yeah, I can tell," Claire said.

The demons hovered around them and circled them. They didn't attack after that initial attack. All three women could hear Jean's voice, it was faint.

"Help me concentrate on it, we'll get this together, and then hopefully we'll find Harry," Lily said.

"He's around close," Kara said but she did what Lily said. Claire, Kara, and Lily all thought with each other.

'_Can anyone hear me?' _Jean's thoughts flickered in and out of her mind. There was a rattle in the back of her mind. It was a nasty feedback loop that caused her head to ring. _'Hello, can anyone hear me?'_

'_Yes, Jean we can hear you, barely, but I don't know for how long,' _Claire thought to her.

The fact those creatures didn't attack them unsettled them. There was another rumble beneath their feet. They could see the demons fade away from around them.

"I've put a tracer on them," Lily said and she frowned. Something didn't register with her as correct. "At least I think I did."

"What's the matter?" Kara asked her.

Lily was trying to make heads or tails of this entire mess. It took her a few seconds to consider something before she responded. "The tracer has split off into about nine different directions….no wait eighteen…..no….."

"It's doubling isn't it?" Claire asked. She was hit by something completely. The demon didn't disappear, it was here, and it was multiplying.

She corrected herself. They were multiplying.

"Okay, let me see if this works," Kara said, closing her eyes.

"Do you need any help?"

Faora turned up instantly. She sent three bolts of purple energy from her hands and caused the demons to explode.

"We've got to banish these things before they pull themselves together," Lily commented. "Do you think that you can help me with this, Faora?"

"What about you Kara?" Faora asked to her. Kara's eyebrow raised and she shook her head.

The blonde's arms folded over her chest. She didn't know how well she would do. Faora placed her hand firmly on Kara's shoulder. "We don't need you to do any lifting. We just need you to help us give us the third angle of the focus for the banishing spells."

"Okay, okay, I'll see what I can do," Kara said, placing her hands upon her hips.

"What can I do? Claire asked.

"Just stand back and be prepared to get out of here if things get ugly," Lily told her.

Claire didn't have it in her to ask what would happen if things would have got ugly. She watched her cousin, Faora, and Lily circle around, forming the three points.

"Either this works, or we're going to be screwed," Lily said in a nervous tone. "But it will work, because I don't intend on being screwing."

Faora and Kara set their jaws. There was a huge flash that erupted around them and something else happened.

"Look, they're being recalled!" Lily yelled. She saw the demons disappear with pops.

"Are you sure they are?" Kara asked. She didn't want to disagree with Lily or contradict her. She knew that things were rarely what they seemed to be in instances like this.

"They're being sent back to their master," Lily said. "And I know where Harry is now."

That was something that got the attention of the three girls, along with Jean who finally broke her way through the barrier.

Or maybe Faora, Kara, Claire, and Lily broke back through the barriers. They looked up and they were back on Earth. The four of them stared up to the sky.

"Are we going back to normal?"

* * *

><p>Harry's attacks increased. He slashed his wrist at the enemies with ruthless aggression. Dormmanu seemed to be bringing his entire army here. The green eyed wizard kept fighting them. He battered them back with a series of rapid fire attacks.<p>

"This better be worth it," Harry muttered. The clock mentally ticked second after second.

He had the wand hidden still. The cloak was in a safe place. The stone finally was beginning to cool off.

"This really better be worth it," Harry continued to grumble with a grimace. He slashed his wrist and knocked his enemies back.

Dormmanu made his way towards the stone. He could use it as a focus to track the other parts of the Trinity.

A bright light erupted around him and burned his hands. The Dreaded One screamed. He never was burned like that.

"It looks like the stone doesn't like you after all," Harry said. "I never thought that I'd have something in common with a highly powerful magical artifact but under the circumstances, I can understand."

The curse of the stone started to spread up Dormmanu's arm. He blocked it and cut his hand off.

"Oh a good counter move, but do you have a counter for this one?" Harry asked, holding the Wand of Eternity in his hand.

"The wand!" Dormmanu screamed. Harry twirled it between his fingers with a cocky smirk on his face. The look on old flame head's face was beyond priceless. "GIVE IT TO ME."

Harry felt a rush of energy that came with an artifact such like this. It made him feel like he could move the entire world.

He also saw the reason why the wand should never be placed in anyone else's hands. The other pieces of the Trinity never should be placed in anyone else's hands.

Dormmanu could see a magical energy bolt flow from the wand that was in Harry's hand. It was the first time, the last time, and the only time he would perform magic with use of some kind of focus device. It did pack a punch but it made him feel cheap for taking a short cut.

The creature felt a rush of energy as he toppled down like a set of dominoes. He toppled over down on the ground.

Harry kept breathing in and out heavily. The wand burned within his hand. The mark of death implanted on his hand.

He threw the wand away like it was hot fire. It landed hard on the ground.

The Dreaded One faded off into the distance. Harry's one attack banished him to a place that was far beyond this realm.

He let the breath out of his body. Harry closed his eyes and healed the mark that appeared on his hand.

The mark of death reappeared on his hand the second that he healed it. It was glowing before him. That was curious. He closed his eyes and tried to channel magic through it.

The mark faded after a second. Then the mark healed again over. Harry tapped his finger over the top of the mark.

The mark twitched on his hand. He looked down and saw the stone and the wand vanish from the ground. The mark glowed into the palm of his hand.

Any attempt to get rid of the mark was folly for Harry. He knew that he would dread doing this.

'_Here goes nothing,' _Harry thought, pressing the tip of his finger to the mark.

For a matter of seconds, nothing happened. Harry was left with the impression that the mark was nothing but a little scar that would not be disappearing. It would be a mark to remember the events of this adventure by.

He touched the mark a second time and he could feel his hand heated up. Harry wondered if the wand had some kind of curse like the stone; only his magic stopped the slow spread. He could hack off his hand and regrow it.

The green eyed wizard conjured a glowing dagger and he plunged it down onto his hand.

Harry grimaced when blood dripped to the ground. His blood burned hole through the ground. They splashed to the ground.

"Okay, the sucky part is over," Harry whispered. He pressed his hand to his amputated hand and grew it back.

It was equally as painful. Harry felt fatigued because growing back lost body parts took a lot of magical energy.

The mark was there and it was more prominent than ever before.

"Okay, I guess third time's the charm," Harry said. He wondered if the mark would fade away.

He closed his eyes and a bright light flashed within his eyes. It was half inside the darkness and half inside the light.

He disappeared into a light, to where he would find out in a matter of moments.

* * *

><p>Lily Evans looked around for a few moments. Everything started to get back to what seemed to be normal. She didn't know what normal was but everything was calmer than it was before.<p>

She was back in the center of New York. The only thing that she had to worry about was the Rush Hour Traffic. There were no invaders whether they be demon, alien, or otherwise. There were no magical portals popping up above the top of her head.

"Can we breathe easily now?"

It was Carol who asked this question. The heroine had the look of someone who had been through one of those intense battles. She advanced on Lily, her blue eyes locked onto Lily's green eyes. There were so many questions to be asked in so little time. Lily wished that she had some of the answers in the back of her mind.

"You know, I don't know," Lily offered her anxiously. She placed her hands together and slowly wrung them together.

Everything ticked by one second at a time. Claire, Kara, and Faora walked forward. The world turned so beautiful and there were more things to appreciate it.

"I think that we've one," Kara said and Claire raised her eyebrow. Kara hastily amended her latest statement. "You know at the risk of sounding premature, I really think it this time. Even though I thought that we won the last couple of times that we won. And the rug got pulled out from underneath us."

"If that isn't for sure, I don't know what is," Gwen said and she walked forward. She nearly fell over. There was a momentary jabbing pain in her knee. Two of the girls walked over to her, looking concerned. "It's okay, I've had much worse. Trust me, it's just a flesh wound."

"If you're sure?" Lily asked, giving her a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Gwen responded to her. She didn't know what to make of what was going on around her today. She had been in the middle of weirdness. This redefined weirdness. "I think that we all did our share today. There were no major casualties. I'm sure when Harry turns up, he can tell us exactly how he worked his magic."

She could see there were many eyes on her when they joined her. Gwen amended her statement.

"Oh, I'm sure that he can tell us and completely confuse us as well," Gwen said, putting her hands together. "Have any of you seen him anyway?"

"We saw flashes of him when we fought those creatures," Claire admitted. She had many more reasons to smile. The last eight hours had been a never ending battle on and off. She was glad that she didn't have the need to punch anything for a long time. And if she ever had to punch anything again, it would be all too soon. "But we haven't seen him show up in the flesh just yet."

Claire was really worried about him. Kara noticed this worry going through her eyes. She edged forward closer to Claire and threw her arm around her shoulder. The blonde pulled her cousin in closely and whispered in her ear.

"Don't worry, Claire, it's going to be fine," Kara said to her in a low voice. "You trust me that it's going to be fine, don't you?"

"Yeah, I trust you, why wouldn't I trust you?" Claire asked her. She seemed anxious.

"We're all worried for the same reasons," Carol said. "And let's face it, despite where Harry went, we've got more than enough to worry about. This is going to be a hell of a thing to spin."

Lily snorted. "Yeah no kidding. Some chaos lord messing with a trio of powerful artifacts and nearly causing all hell to break out on Earth doesn't go over well with most people. Maybe that's just me though, but that's just how things tend to go."

"Trust me when I say that it's not just you," Carol admitted. She placed her hand firmly on Lily's shoulders.

Lily thought about what happened today. She did wish for a sign that Harry was completely okay. After what he might have gone through, she didn't think that he would completely okay. She would settle for alive though for now and work from there.

When Lily Evans suffered a lot of stress, she threw herself into her work with reckless abandon. That was a trait that Harry inherited from her as well.

"I wouldn't be near her when she's like this," Carol told the group. "Let's just say that Harry gets his intense behavior from somewhere and it's certainly his mother's side of the family."

Faora turned on her heel and walked off. She could sense that he was nowhere but everywhere.

"Am I the only one who's sensing that Harry's nowhere but everywhere?" Kara asked and Faora turned towards her. The blonde didn't back down even though the older Kryptonian gave her a sharp look. "I guess I'm not."

"No, you're not," Faora admitted to her. It was quite the tricky situation to deal with.

"Well you know Harry, he'll show up soon, likely right about now," Gwen said and she looked over her shoulder. She expected Harry to show up.

The fact that Harry didn't show up right on cue was a bit concerning for her.

* * *

><p>Harry Potter touched the strange and mysterious symbol on his hand. The symbol was the one for the Unholy Trinity. He could see himself transported in the middle of a field. Said field hand interesting contrasts and reminded him of a place where he landed to train to be Sorcerer Supreme.<p>

There were some differences to that. He got the message loud and clear. These contrasts were that half of the field was light and the other half of the field was dark. It was almost like Harry walked on both sides of life. It was both good and bad sides.

He saw them sitting there in a pile. The cloak rested on the bottom, with the stone and the wand laying on top of it.

'_Arranged just like the symbol of the Unholy Trinity,' _Harry thought to himself. _'No, that's not the least bit foreboding at all, is it?'_

Harry took that first tentative step forward. He was pretty sure that something off was going to happen. This was another trial in a life full of them so far. He didn't know exactly what to expect. He figured that going for the unexpected might work nicely.

What he didn't expect was the one and only Klarion the Witch Boy to drop out of the sky?

'_And returning from his quickest banishment yet, this guy,' _Harry thought. He knew that he had to move quickly, before Klarion had a chance to regain his bearings.

Harry shot a bolt of light at Klarion and knocked him backwards. There was an endless void where he stood.

"So, this is it, it's between you and me again, isn't it?" Klarion asked. He somehow blocked one of Harry's attacks. "You know, I was going to forgive you for that entire blasting me into that horrible place thing but…."

Harry shut him up with one bolt of light. He could see that Klarion's beady little eyes focused on one thing.

"So, the Trinity all in one place, at one time, it's like a dream come true!"

If Klarion was a little sharper on the uptake, he would have noticed that something unsettling was Harry. It was just the latest unsettling thing that happened in this entire dimension.

He thought that the Dark Dimension and Earth bleeding into each other was a bad thing. The Sorcerer Supreme was proven wrong when he noticed the barriers between life and death degrading before his eyes. The Unholy Trinity put together in such a way would have to be the cause of this catastrophe.

And Harry gave one more groan. He knew that the trio merging for the first time in hundreds of years on All Hallow's Eve gave things an added layer of insanity.

'_Hey, this day, it just keeps getting better and better, I'm really excited by this,' _Harry thought dryly.

He did the only thing that made sense. He placed up a barrier to block Klarion's attempt to dive at the artifacts.

The scream of the witch boy of having another plan get foiled never got old from Harry. It was like the gift that kept on giving.

There was one final move from Harry. The Hallows, the Unholy Trinity rested underneath his nose. Harry Potter felt like he was everywhere but nowhere at all when he reached towards them.

The symbol on his hand glowed and the Hallows levitated, pretty much sticking to the symbol on his hand.

"NO, NO, NO!" Klarion shouted. Those were the last words that he spoke when a burst of chaotic magical energy engulfed him and dematerialized him.

Harry Potter vanished but to where was an interesting question. There was no sign that he had ever been on this mysterious plain.

* * *

><p><strong>To Be Continued On November 20<strong>**th****, 2014. **

**And we're getting to the end point of this story. Obviously this story went in a couple of ways that I didn't even intend it to go.**

**I do admit that Harry hacking off his hand and regrowing it back might have been a bit much. But it was needed to drive home the point that the symbol is more than skin deep. **


	24. The Trinity

**Chapter Twenty Four: The Trinity.**

* * *

><p>The more Harry Evans, Har-Zod, the Sorcerer Supreme knew, the less that he understood. Or maybe it was the less than he wanted to understand. He honestly didn't know at this point. He managed to put together the events of the last several hours in his mind.<p>

He defeated Dormmanu. The bastard appeared to have blown to pieces. One shot with the Wand of Eternity really messed him up something fierce. Harry hated using wands but even he had to admit that was a powerful shot that caused some real damage.

Then he banished Klarion, at least twice. The smug little bastard made one final push to the Deathly Hallows. There was absolutely nothing that he could do to stop Harry. It was almost like the Hallows, the Trinity, decided that they were his master.

Did he mention that he united the Unholy Trinity on Halloween? All Hallow's Eve as it was commonly known as, it was also known as a day of some fucked up magic and shit like that. It was a day where many rituals could be done for ultimate power.

Harry Potter literally walked through hell in his attempt to get his hands on three magical artifacts that he didn't really want. Just because he didn't want them, didn't mean that others wanted them. He hoped to find a way to destroy them so he could end this endless cycle of bloodletting that they caused. Master of Death seemed like such a vague title. He doubted very much that would go that far.

'_Likely master of causing all kinds of headache inducing inter-dimensional disturbances,' _Harry thought to himself. He took one more step forward. He was walking towards something. _'Guess that walking through hell for these things wasn't that much of an understatement.'_

"Harry Potter," a voice whispered.

Harry stood up straighter. There was just something about a voice speaking his name that seemed unsettling. He couldn't quite put his finger on exactly why that was.

He heard another whisper of his name. Harry held the three pieces of the Trinity in his hand. They felt like a pipe bomb that was about ready to go off and explode in his face.

Harry took another step towards the general area of the voice. He knew that he would have to complete this journey before he returned home.

'_I hope that no one is worrying about me,' _Harry thought. For once, this dangerous situation wasn't completely his fault. At least it wasn't one hundred percent his fault. He was able to accept at least forty percent, maybe fifty percent.

Harry felt the warmth spread through his body. It was pretty sobering to feel when he kept walking forward. He was in the good place; he could feel the good vibes.

He paused and checked his surroundings. It turned out that he had one foot in the good place and the other foot standing in the bad place. That was about the story of his life, Harry figured.

He swept his hair out from underneath his brow when he kept walking.

"So, it has been a long time. I've been waiting for you for a long time. You don't know how many unworthy people have come close to putting together the artifacts. Some of them have caused untold of havoc in their quest for the artifacts. I shudder to think what they could have done if they have ever gotten their hands on one of them, never mind all three. I take the creation of these artifacts to be my greatest mistake. If I had only had any idea what trouble this would have caused, then I would have never introduced these artifacts in any way whatsoever."

Harry blinked and edged forward. He had many questions.

"Why did you bring me here?"

"I had to ensure that you were the one and I'm sorry if I was cryptic, that was not my intention," she commented. She sounded honestly sorry and Harry believed her. "Master, I don't think that you've realized what you've truly unlocked. And how close the world was from ending until you stopped it."

"I have an idea….Miss…" Harry commented. Given the nature of the artifacts, he had a good idea who he spoke to.

"I've been known over many names, too many for me to recall and way too many for me to count," she replied, her voice seeming nervous when she spoke. "But the name that I've been called the most is Death. I'm one of the Endless. I think that you've heard of me."

"Yes, I have, but I've never had the pleasure of meeting you."

She smiled and stepped out of the light to fully face her master. She wore a nice black robe that extended to the ground. The woman walked forward, approaching him with a smile on her face. Her dark hair extended down her face and her alluring eyes flashed. The robe covered her body. She looked like a cute Goth, the type of person that no one would assume of any kind of wrong doing.

"Hello," Harry commented to her with a smile and he gently took her hand. He planted a kiss on the top of her hand.

Death smiled despite herself. She had been observing this one for a long time. She felt like a filthy voyeur. The woman consoled herself with the fact that she had to watch a lot of people to see that their time is up.

"So, what Pandora's Box did I unlock this time?"

"Well, you obtained something, the will of both sides of the afterlife. The warm and bright reward and the harsh and bitter torment. But I suppose that you have to like your work to keep certain sides of that in line."

Harry turned around in surprise. He could see an extremely attractive woman standing there before him. She resembled the first Death in certain ways. She wore a tight black leather bra that contained an ample set of breasts. Her stomach was flat and toned. She wore a thong and knee high boots that covered her body. She sauntered over towards Harry and there was a sinful flash of mischief in her eye. She had the type of body that was built absolutely for sin as well.

"Master, it's good to finally meet you, even if I've observed you for some time," she commented and she showed less restraint than her more innocent counterpart. She leaned in towards her master and gave him a searing kiss. The tables turned completely when Harry overpowered her and pushed her against a pillar.

She was left breathless, much to the amusement of her more innocent counterpart.

"Don't say anything, but you should have seen that coming," the more innocent side of Death commented lightly. Her more shifty counterpart gave her a smile.

"Don't worry, you're next," she commented and she beckoned for the younger woman to get up to her feet.

Death sighed and Harry looked at her. She could feel the power that flowed through his body. Even without being touched by the artifacts, he was something amazing. Death couldn't really put her finger on how amazing he was, other than he was amazing.

"Don't worry, I'll take good care of you."

Death smiled when Harry's mouth pressed against hers. Her other counterpart sat upon the throne and waited for Harry to finish.

"I'll take really good care of you," Harry commented to her.

"I'm sure that you will master, you'll take really god care of both of us," her darker counterpart commented. "But we do have some important matters to discuss before we get down to more interesting business. You know that, don't you?"

Harry laughed at that statement. "Believe me, I know that. I have questions as to the reasons why the artifacts acted in the way that they did."

The more innocent counterpart of Death gave him a smile. "You know, that's a good question."

"Let's see if we can figure that out," she said. "Oh, and call me Hope, because calling both of us Death gets really confusing after a while. And by really confusing, I mean it could melt your brain."

She placed her arms around Harry and grinned. "So, are we ready to work things out? The sooner that we understand what happened, the sooner that you can return back to life."

The younger version added in her own voice. "And sooner the better given that there are people who would rip apart the Earth to look after Harry."

Hope grinned and smiled. "Which means it's a good thing that we're right here and now."

* * *

><p>Lily returned to SHIELD headquarters. She finished briefing Maria on exactly what happened. This wasn't fun to give a briefing to anyone, especially when you couldn't fully explain what the hell was happening. The only solitude that Lily had was the fact that she didn't have to explain this insanity to Fury.<p>

'_Not that it makes things much easier,' _Lily thought, shaking her head in frustration. The redhead green eyed witch left SHIELD.

"So, we're going the same way, aren't we?" Natasha asked when she walked next to Lily.

"Yes, I guess we are, I'm surprised that you're back from your mission already, given how important it was," Lily told Natasha.

The spy turned her head towards Lily, raising her eyebrow and giving her a smile. "Yes, the mission was important, but it got side tracked by the same thing that you have to deal with. When demons start attacking the world, everything takes a backseat."

Lily found amusement in those words. If that wasn't true, she didn't know exactly what was.

"Do you have any idea what happened?" Natasha asked Lily. Her green eyes locked onto Lily's who shrugged. "Or are we just shooting in the dark?"

"Half and half, I'm guessing what's happening, but after all that I've dealt with, I have a pretty good idea," Lily commented to Natasha. She frowned. "But Harry will have a very good idea what happened whenever he comes back."

There was a question that Natasha had. "Where is Harry?"

Lily whistled completely. She looked at Natasha and made sure that there was no one around.

"That's a good question right now, he hasn't been seen all day," Lily said and Natasha turned towards her, frowning.

"You don't know where he is, and…..you're trying not to act like you're worried, but you're worried, aren't you?" Natasha asked her. Lily made a noncommittal grunt.

She could tell that there was something that was stirring in Lily's head. The gears of justice as the statement was continued to grind.

"There's no indication that Harry is in any danger," Lily said and Natasha didn't say anything. The body language she performed said pretty much everything for her. "But you know as well as I do that he wouldn't give any indication if his life depended on it."

"And what if his life did depend on it?" Natasha asked her and Lily smiled.

"You and I both know the answer to that one," Lily commented to her. "But he never has gotten in a truly dangerous situation."

Natasha wasn't going to say anything about Lily having weird standards of what was truly dangerous. Mostly this was because she was the furthest one to have any room to talk about situations like this. She went into missions that she knew were dangerous without any hint of an extraction plan. If that wasn't dangerous, then someone would really need to revise their meaning of the word dangerous.

There was a flash of light. Natasha stood up, rigid. She could see a dark haired girl dressed in a black shirt and a black skirt, along with thigh high black boots. Her eagle eyes saw the resemblance to Harry straight away. Her bright blue eyes shined and that was the only difference.

"Natasha, you haven't met my niece, have you?" Lily asked.

Faora was quick to meet the cover story. Natasha raised an eyebrow and she turned towards Lily.

"Right, your niece," Natasha commented. She was willing to play along with Lily's game for now, given the situation that she was in. "I wasn't aware Rose had a daughter. And it's a pleasure to meet you…"

"Alexandra Evans," Faora said to Natasha and she shook her hand. "I wanted to know if SHIELD has any leads on Harry."

"Nothing, whether it be on the record or off of it," Natasha said with a stone cold stare towards "Alexandra". "It was almost like he disappeared off of the radar and there isn't a trace of him."

"Do you know Harry well?" Faora asked Natasha.

"We've met," Natasha commented. Faora raised her eyebrow and it was obvious that Natasha had to amend that statement. "We have been on the same mission numerous times. It was just the two of us."

"There is no need to say anymore, I understand," Faora commented to them.

Kara, Gwen, and Jean all walked forward to join them.

"Claire's gone back to Smallville to inform the rest what happened," Kara informed them.

"Well that's going to cause a shitstorm," Lily said. Not that she wasn't complaining about Claire informing the group about what was happening. She just felt that she would be the one that would have to answer a lot of questions that she didn't honestly have the answers for.

"Shitstorm, yeah that's a pretty good way to describe it," Gwen commented. "You know Chloe and you know that she's going to move heaven and Earth to find out what happened."

It went without saying Gwen didn't even want to think about what stones that Lois was going to try and uncover in her attempt to find out what happened. The blonde shuddered at the thought of it.

"Well if she can find out something, more power to her," Faora said. "I'm sure that Clara will keep an eye on her."

"Knowing Clara she's going to be right next to both of them in their insane searches," Gwen muttered underneath her breath. Kara turned towards her.

"Maybe we should be right beside them now as well?" Kara asked. "It's still weird though, that I feel that Harry is everywhere but at the same time he's nowhere at all. It's weird, it really shouldn't be happening like this."

"I know it's weird, but it's an accurate feeling," Jean said. She felt like she was boxed in.

All of this great Cosmic power and she couldn't track down her mate. This frustrated her beyond all ends.

"Don't freak out Jean, Harry wouldn't want you to do that," Lily said.

"And would Harry want you to freak out?" Jean fired back and Lily turned towards her. Two sets of different green eyes locked onto each other. "Not that I'm accusing you of freaking out, not at all."

Lily thought that the accusation hit a little closer to home than ever before. She did freak out, she freaked out badly and she freaked out big time. She just was a lot better at showing it when she was this old, as opposed to when she was nine.

"Harry wouldn't want any of us to get upset or worry on our account," Gwen said and she added one more part to her frustrating statement. "Of course, knowing Harry, he would get really frustrated and upset on our accounts."

"Of course he would, it wouldn't be Harry if it wasn't," Kara said and she said this statement with half pride and half irritation. She didn't know Harry as long as they did.

"You do realize that all of you will forget that you're mad at him when he jumps your bones next time," Natasha commented in a nonchalant manner. That caused all of them to shut up and stammer in response.

She smiled but there was no rest for the wicked. An alarm went off and she lifted the card up to the tip of her head.

"Director Hill…..yes, I understand," Natasha said.

"Oh, please don't let it be more trouble," Lily said, sounding more like a teenage girl than her more mature self. That was something that got a lot of amusement of the group.

Natasha took a moment to become serious and she shook her head. "I'm not sure if that's the case….all Director Hill said it's an anomaly, several Class I threats have been found dead."

"Class I?" Faora asked.

"Suspected immortals," Lily explained to her and Faora raised her eyebrow.

"Well they can't be that immortal if they just turned up dead," Gwen commented, making the obvious statement.

"Obviously, that's why it's so strange," Natasha commented. No sooner did she say this, Carol turned up to join the group.

A lot of the gang was here and they all went up to meet Director Hill.

* * *

><p>"The best that we can tell is that your own prodigal magical talents caused the three keys to merge with each other," Hope continued. "But that's just a shot in the dark. The mark on her hand indicates that the Trinity chose you. And don't ask us how magical artifacts can choose a person. There are some things that are even beyond our comprehension, you know."<p>

Harry knew but he had another question. He hoped that the two of them had a pretty good answer for him as well.

"Weren't you the two that helped create the objects?"

Hope sighed. "In a way yes, but in another way, we didn't. And we wish that what little hand that we had in them wasn't there. It did speed up the arrival of some dangerous forces, but it also caused many innocent lives to get destroyed."

The younger, more innocent version of Death, Didi, spoke in an extremely calm manner. "Death is an abstract concept that is difficult for many people to understand. Humans have wrecked their own lives in an attempt to try to understand it."

"And they have killed many in an attempt to try to understand it or cheat it," Harry replied. "And now since I have the three keys, I guess that I would be considered the Master of Death."

"Well that's a title that doesn't mean what people think that it does," Hope told him and she placed her hands down on the back of his neck. "While I would agree that it has certain perks and benefits….there are other perks and benefits that people wish to have that it doesn't."

"And the one biggest perk is immortality….which isn't really true, because nothing can be forever," Didi added and she decided to situation herself in Harry's lap when he sat down on the throne. Hope kneeled by his side, scantily clad as ever before. She placed her hand down onto Harry's knees.

"But your life will be very long lived," Hope said with a smile on her face. "But you can never tell too long lived. Because things happen. Even the best prepared of us meet a sudden death."

"Let's just put it this way, you'll be extremely long lived underneath the yellow sunlight to begin with," Didi commented. She could feel Harry's hand stroke the back of her neck calmly. It caused sensations to spread through her body that she never felt before. "But you already knew that, there is really no reason to tell you that, is there?"

"Nope, there really is no reason at all, but in interest of full disclosure," Harry answered.

Hope stroked her way up his leg. It was obvious that she was showing a great deal of restraint. Who could really blame her at this point? Seeing a huge chunk of eye candy dangling underneath her eye like this, it was hard for her to say no. She didn't really see that many of them. She had to deal some hideous people. They both looked it and they were it personality wise.

"And you will be able to recall shades to do your bidding, hopefully with a bit more control than Klarion did, become invisible on will…..which is really nothing that concerns you," Hope said trailing off. "You know because of the fact that you can become invisible on your own with numerous spells."

"It's amusing isn't it?" Harry asked both sides of Death. "A person who barely needs the gifts of the Deathly Hallows, the keys of eternity, is the one that's the most worthy of them."

"That's the idea, it's a test of character, and there were too many people looking for shortcuts," Hope said.

Didi sighed in response. "Sadly though…..we failed in imparting that lesson to people, as thousands of years of deaths surrounding these objects and other such objects will tell you."

Harry knew that all of this was based around the wand. The other two objects were means to complete the set. He doubted that people would stop the quest even if he put out word that the objects had been destroyed. For all intents and purposes they were. They became a part of Harry and no longer existed as tangible objects.

"And I'm sure that you'd like to return home and you should and you will. But it's time for you to understand some of the other perks and benefits that being the Master of Death has."

Harry was interested in this statement. He only had one thing to say.

"Maybe you would like to give me a demo?"

* * *

><p>Maria Hill was the Director of SHIELD. She had the responsibilities thrown down on her lap when Nick Fury took one of his leaves of absence. She understood it completely. She didn't have to like it. She in fact hated it a whole lot. She understood it though, she really did.<p>

There was no amount of understanding to be had when she tried to piece together the insanity that was over the past couple of days. Twenty high class SHIELD threats who couldn't have been killed shouldn't have dropped dead.

"You know, I sense the divine hand of Harry in this one," Maria said, without turning around. Lily walked up towards her and she was not alone. Natasha followed Lily, Carol was right next to both of them. The group just snowballed from there. "Maybe it's just me but when he disappears like this, you know that he's up to something."

"I might be his mother, but I'm not his keeper," Lily said crossly.

Maria checked the data one more time to make sure that she had everything. Once she did, she spoke. "You know, I'm pretty sure that you have theories about what happened."

"Do you want the outlandish ones or the plausible ones first?" Lily asked.

"Whatever you think is the most likely," Maria answered her.

"So you take Fury's job and you slowly turn into Fury," Gwen commented lightly and Maria turned to Gwen. The blonde took half of a step back.

Lily defused the situation before it got out of hand. Which she felt was soon. It was just something that she felt. "You know, Harry was going after someone who was after…..you heard of the Unholy Trinity, haven't you?"

Maria had a shrewd idea where this was going. She also had a shrewd idea that she wasn't going to like it. Any unclassified objects such as this Unholy Trinity only proved to be a headache.

"Yes, I've heard of it," Maria said. She turned around and wished that she could have a drink right about now. The only problem was SHIELD protocol prohibited that when its Director was in the middle of an intense investigation. She would have to think about having that changed. "Are you going to tell me that they actually exist?"

"The stranger the myth, the more chance it is to exist, you should know that better than anyone else, Maria," Lily commented to her with a smile. "Would you have believed that a hidden magical school existed?"

"No, and I really wish that part of the world hadn't existed and I'm sure many people in SHIELD share those sentiments," Maria said.

"Believe me, I share those sentiments," Lily said and Natasha cleared her throat, making sure that both of her fellow SHIELD agents didn't get off task. "But, we're getting off topic here, aren't we?"

"Yes, we are, you wanted to tell me about this Unholy Trinity of objects."

"You know, you could have waited for me to get back, because I would have been happy to tell you all about it. Although maybe it would be best if I told you about it all over dinner."

Natasha stepped forward and she verified that the one and only Harry Evans, the Sorcerer Supreme stood there. He wasn't able to trip up the SHIELD security. She would be disappointed if he didn't enter the place, giving a bunch of women heart attacks.

"You know you could have sent a message before you decided to turn back up out of the blue," Maria said to him. Several girls rushed over instantly to rush Harry, which lead to a chaotic scene. "How long do you suppose this is going to happen?"

It was Lily who answered this question, letting Gwen, Jean, Faora, and Kara all have their fun. She prided herself on being a mature adult and showing restraint, thank you very much.

"You know, Maria, you should have brought a book, because this might take a long time," Lily admitted. The Director of SHIELD cast Lily one of those looks. Lily smiled and nodded. "I'm just saying, that's all."

Harry cleared his throat and the girls all backed up. It was amazing how they all obeyed him when he spoke. Maria wondered if that was one of his super powers, to have full control over all the girls that he spoke to.

She honestly wouldn't have been surprised about it. The dark haired woman's eyes flickered towards him.

"You want the entire truth, don't you?" Harry asked.

Maria sighed. She knew somehow, someway that she was going to regret asking for the entire truth. The truth was an extremely dangerous thing to be told in these circumstances. She needed to know.

"Perhaps you want me to start why several high end SHIELD threats that you thought was immortal just dropped dead," Harry offered, giving her the opening. Maria's eyes turned towards him. She didn't make any visual indication of shock. Harry was able to read her body language and how she moved.

"I'm not surprised," Maria said to him. She waited for the information to be given to her. Despite the fact that it could potentially drive her absolutely insane, she still wanted to know.

"You shouldn't be surprised," Harry answered her with a smile on his face. "So, are you ready?"

"Yes, tell me because you know how I don't like suspense," Maria said, trying to feign anger. She was just as glad to see Harry as everyone else. She wasn't happy that she had to sort through the madness that followed him.

"You know if you need a drink after all of this, I'd be happy to buy you one," Harry told her, his face stoic. There was much laughter from the people standing behind him and his mother was one of them.

"You better, several in fact," Maria said. "Okay, shoot."

"That's told to me in a different context than normal," Harry joked and Maria raised her eyebrow. "Okay, I've been stalling for long enough for no good reason. Well actually I have a good reason."

Harry wanted to make heads or tails of this as much as the next person. It was time to tell them this story, for better or for worse.

* * *

><p>"You blew her mind completely," Kara said in amusement, as she joined Harry and Jean making her way to the Mansion back in Smallville. "Or is that a normal thing for her?"<p>

"To blow Maria Hill's mind, I've done that often enough, thank you very much," Harry told Kara. The blonde looked at him, shaking her head in amusement. "I've blown the minds of many of the female agents in SHIELD. Oh I have stories to tell you."

"They can wait for another time, I think," Jean said. She heard a few of them. She lived a few more of them. She was pretty sure that there were a few adventures there that she didn't hear about. The redhead telepath slowly played with Harry's shirt buttons. "So when you merged with the magical artifacts of death…"

"You make it sound so…"

Kara cut in and kissed Harry hard. Her moist lips planted on his. Her hands roamed over his abs.

"Now that you merged with the magical artifacts of death, what are you going to do now?" Jean asked him.

"Well, I'm sure that we can experiment with the new perks and benefits they offer," Harry said, and he pulled both Jean and Kara towards him in response. Both of them pressed on either side of Harry. Smiles crossed his face when both of them looked at him. "I may have increased in stamina and strength as well by the wand."

"So essentially the wand of infinite power boost made you better in bed," Kara said without missing a beat.

Jean sighed. Kara could be so completely blunt. She decided to remove Harry's shirt.

'_When in Rome,' _Jean thought and she unbuttoned Harry's pants.

The two girls prepared to have their wicked way with their lover. They had a lot of plans for him and their bodies hungered for what his upgrades could do to him.

* * *

><p>Kara and Jean rested on either side of Harry. Their minds were really blown. Harry Potter was good at doing that. Kara snuggled up against his left side. Jean took his right side. It was a good position for any single man to be in.<p>

Harry leaned towards both of them. "So, what's on your agenda?"

"You know, to celebrate the entire saving the world thing, maybe we should go to Vegas, it always seemed pretty cool," Kara commented in an idle voice and that caused Jean to raise her eyebrow in surprise.

"Vegas, seriously, Vegas?" Jean asked Kara and Kara smiled. "Yeah, you know why not? I mean the insanity of Vegas would be less so than what we've dealt with."

"So, it's settled then, I think we should head to Vegas," Harry commented. "It will be really fun."

Kara and Jean locked eyes. They knew what they were getting themselves into and looked forward to it.

**To Be Concluded On 11/22/2014.**

* * *

><p><strong>And so we wrap up some loose ends. Fun ride this has been but obviously there's no need to stretch this one out. A lot of times(more often than I should) things get stretched out too much.<strong>


	25. Master of Death Master of Everything

**Chapter Twenty-Five: Master of Death/Master of Everything. **

* * *

><p>Gwen Stacy knew that it was her responsibility to fill in the entire crew in Smallville with what was happening regarding Harry. She got a text message from Gotham City no sooner than she got there. It was short, sweet, and to the point and told her pretty much everything that the person on the other end wanted to know and everything that she needed to know.<p>

**What in the hell happened?**

Gwen grimaced when she held the phone in her hand. It amused her that the person who got all of the information was the one that wanted the information from her. Gwen held the phone up and she tapped on it. She waited for the call to come in on the other side.

"Yeah, it's me, Harry's alive, and he's changed….for the better as far as he's said," Gwen said. "A lot of people who shouldn't be alive after all of this have dropped dead. It's interesting, isn't it? Yeah, I'll talk to you in a little bit, trust me on that one. How about we do lunch?"

Gwen confirmed that lunch was on. She was sure that this wouldn't be the only person that Gwen would have to give information to. The blonde chuckled in amusement. Being the smartest girl of her age could have many perks and benefits. It could also be a pain in the neck.

"Harry returned from his mysterious adventure, didn't he?"

"Hey, Chloe, and yeah he did," Gwen commented, walking forward. "Claire isn't taking it too hard that he didn't directly come back, I hope?"

"No, she did get his message that said he was okay, so I knew about this," Chloe said. "And Kara and Jean dragged him off for some alone time. I think she might be a little bit upset that she wasn't invited."

"That makes two of us," Gwen commented underneath her breath. Chloe shifted her eyebrow. "Or does it make more than two of us?"

Chloe smirked. She led Gwen over towards the Kent Family homestead. "I'll be perfectly honest. I long since stopped keeping track because I needed a spreadsheet."

Gwen laughed. That was the truth and nothing but the truth regarding Harry.

"Harry's a kleptomaniac, he likes collecting wayward women," Chloe continued. "And I feel a bit miffed that I was on the sidelines with this entire adventure."

"Chlo, trust me, you'd be out of your depth," Gwen said and she paused. She spoke bluntly and truthfully. "I was out of my depth."

"That's really hard to believe," Chloe said with a frown on her face. "But I guess that if you think that you're out of your depth, than you were."

"I did what I always did though," Gwen added. "I kept fighting."

"You kept doing whatever a Spider-Girl, did?" Chloe asked her.

"Pretty much," Gwen admitted to her. She cracked a moment of amusement on her face. "So are you ready to meet with the rests of the group?"

"Not really, Lois is driving me up a wall," Chloe said. Gwen barely held back her grin. "I guess that was just whatever Lois Lane does."

"Pretty much," Gwen commented. She met halfway with Chloe and the pair turned around. The two of them made their way into the Kent family homestead. "Martha, it's nice to see you again, it really is."

"Gwen, honey, it's nice to see you again as well," Martha Kent commented. "And it's good to see that you managed to escape the insanity of what's happening. I heard it through the news. It must have been far worse to live it."

"It was far worse," Gwen admitted, taking the cup of coffee that she had been pushed in front of her. Lana decided to join the group as well. Chloe sat down next to her. "But, at least it's over and more importantly, Harry is perfectly safe."

"Oh is he safe?" Lana asked, speaking up for the first time. Gwen smiled in response. "It's really good to see you too, Gwen."

"Same here Lana," Gwen said. "For about the eighth time, Harry died and came back to life. Or maybe he wasn't technically dead or alive."

Gwen got her share of confused expressions. She blinked and shook her head at them.

"You know, I don't know how to explain it any more than you do," Gwen said and she could see their gazes on her. "I know, it's one of those insane magic type things, that you have to be completely bent in the head to pretend to understand."

"There are something's in life that I don't think were ever meant to be understood," Lana suggested with a long sigh.

"If that isn't the truth, I don't know what is."

Lois made her way into the Kent Family home. She decided to help herself to the rest of the cup of coffee that rested on the table. There was an obvious groan that came from Chloe. It was because Lois Lane and coffee were an extremely bad combination especially in a stressful situation like this.

"I've been under a lot of tension," Lois said, seeing Chloe's eyes locked on her. The blonde shrugged. "Don't give me that look."

"Lois, you're going to end up popping a blood vessel," Chloe said.

"Lucy was in the thick of things, she just gave me a blow by blow account," Lois said.

"I'm sure that thrilled her a lot to be in her first big time mission when the world was ending," Chloe commented dryly.

"Well, she got that from you….and she got that from me, and she has a few issues by losing her mother at an extremely young age, yeah I'll just shut up because I'm rambling."

Gwen snickered. That was the one thing about Lois, she did that.

"So, where is Claire?" Gwen asked her.

Suddenly, Claire stumbled in and she looked a bit worse for wear. It was obvious that she had been through a lot.

"Just swung by the mansion and he wasn't there," Claire said. She sounded absolutely exasperated at the thought of it. "It didn't help that something caused me to drop out of the sky the moment that I was there."

"That something wouldn't have wanted you to head to the nearest shower, would it?" Chloe asked Claire with a raised eyebrow. Claire looked like she was doing her best impression of some kind of tomato. She was this close to being able to stammer and stare. Chloe nearly looked at the absolutely amusing expression on her friend's face. It amused her a million times to see this look on her face. "Yeah, I thought that it might be like this."

"I believe that Harry decided to test drive his new powers," Gwen said and that got the attention of the entire group in the kitchen. "And it looked like he was going to use Jean and Kara as his partners in an attempt to see what he could do with his powers."

"It was impressive," Chloe said, letting out her breath in a low whistle.

All of them were thinking the same things.

"Kara mentioned something about Vegas as well before she left," Gwen commented, almost speaking as an afterthought.

That caused Claire's eyebrow to rise up nearly past the top of her head. Perhaps she had completely lost all sense of herself but there was only one thing that went through her mind when someone talked about Vegas.

"Well she's adapting to Earth life quite nicely," Lois said in laughter.

Claire folded her arms and Chloe grabbed her gently by the shoulder to bring her back to life.

"You and I both know the reason that you're upset about this," Chloe commented to her. "I don't even need to spell it out for you. You don't even need to have to read between the lines."

Claire sighed.

"How about a road trip?" Lois asked.

"How about no?" Claire replied, she was glad that Lois snapped her out of her disappointment. If nothing else, it gave her something to banter back and forth with.

Lois was shaken with being shut down so fast that she couldn't really believe this.

"You….you…..?"

It was seconds after Lois allowed her brain to reboot when she realized that Claire was gone. It left her in the kitchen in the dust.

"You know what she's like when she sets her mind to something," Chloe said. She amended herself. "Well, Lana and I know better because we've known her the longest."

"So, who's up for lunch?" Martha asked calmly which brought their attention back away from this drama regarding Claire.

* * *

><p>It was a wild and insane night in Vegas. It might have been a couple of nights to be honest. Harry really wasn't too sure about that. He just tried to return himself to a state of sanity.<p>

He woke up in the Vegas hotel room. It already had a state that indicated that it was well worked in. His head lifted up halfway off of the pillows. The walls had scorch marks. The ceilings had scorch marks. It was very lucky that the bed was intact after what he somewhat recalled.

'_What a night,' _Harry thought to himself, finding a bit of amusement in this situation.

The truth was that he didn't get drunk all that easily unless he mentally willed himself to attempt to try and get drunk. If that happened there would be exceptions to rules. There would be exceptions to many rules. Harry proved that he exceeded every single rule.

His arm wrapped around the redheaded female that pressed against him. Her body was extremely sweaty and very sticky. There was also a satisfied look on her face.

Harry realized that they took their fun to their ultimate conclusion. Given the bonds that they shared, they were pretty close to that point as well. He chuckled in amusement when he realized that many people might be upset that they didn't need to partake on the fun.

Jean Grey stirred against him. It was obvious that she had finally crashed after an extremely long night. This was a long night that made their Smallville escapades look like a warm up.

They made those Smallville escapades look like a warm up for sure. Harry couldn't even begin to go over the number of ways how that happened. He shifted the sleeping redhead off of his arm. Who had decided to cling on it when he was asleep and wasn't letting go any time soon.

"Hello sleeping beauty," Harry whispered to her and Jean shifted awake. There was a bright grin on her face in response.

"Hey yourself," she responded in a tense voice. She had a look on her face that indicated that she was extremely pleased with herself. And why shouldn't she be? It was a great night to be alive. "So, what day is it? Or have you lost track of the time like I did."

"I'm pretty sure it's just the next day," Harry said. Jean turned over towards him, propped up on the side of her elbow. She grinned at him. "At least I'm almost sure it's the same day."

Jean raised her eyebrow and laughed. "Well if you're almost sure."

Jean leaned over towards Harry. She swept him into a kiss. It was something that indicated that last night was a prelude to things to come. Which would make the fun and games in Smallville a prelude to the prelude. Harry didn't want to think about this too much. His brain started to melt.

"So, where's the other third of our Unholy Trinity?"

"Present and accounted for."

Kara made her way out of the bathroom, wearing a nice transparent white robe. She sauntered into the room, a sultry smile on her face. She made sure that she got the proper amount of attention from Harry. The blonde decided to obtain this by leaning down. Her lips stole a kiss from Harry. Not that she needed to be some kind of grand master of theft to get such a just reward. It was the thought that mattered.

"You're raring to go this morning, aren't you?" Harry asked.

Kara decided to take a seat on the bed. And what she did was straddle over Harry's lap. She placed her hands on either side of his shoulders.

"You better believe it," Kara said with a smile. She looked down in her soulmate's eyes adoringly.

Kara's fingers trailed down his hair, she stroked it with an adoring expression dancing in her eyes. There was more excitement brimming through her eyes than one could even realize.

"I hope that you weren't going to even think to start without me," Kara commented with a wicked grin on her face.

"No, the thought never crossed are mind," Harry said and he decided to turn her over, to pin her down on the bed. Kara writhed underneath his grip which was an enticing thought to be sure. He turned his attention away from Kara to Jean. "Did we?"

"No, we would never do such a thing," Jean whispered, making sure that she situated herself so she was face to face from being away from Kara. "Trust me, honey. Just trust me."

Jean smiled and leaned down. She slowly planted her lips onto Kara's with a kiss.

Harry heard something arrive outside the Balcony. Kara could hear the same thing.

"I was wondering when she would show up," Kara said, getting up to her feet and she walked over towards the window.

There was a yell from the pavement below.

"LOOK, IT'S SUPERWOMAN!"

"Superwoman?" Kara asked, raising her eyebrow.

"Hey, if the cape fits, wear it," Claire said, pulling back the curtain to face Kara. "So, you decided to indulge yourself into the blunders of Las Vegas?"

"Don't give her such a hard time Claire," Harry told her. "Need I remind you about you and Alicia…."

"I could have sworn that I told you never to bring that up again," Claire commented, her cheeks growing red. "And you did a bang up job of being the angel on my shoulder."

"Oh, I've got to hear this."

Claire could see the mischief dance in her cousin's eyes. She tried to give her a look.

"You know, technically we're not that far apart in age, maybe a year, and technically I'm older than you if we go by actual birthdate," Kara fired back at her. She amended something. "Even if the time in stasis doesn't count, I think that I still have you beat."

"Don't push it," Claire commented to her. She was smiling, she couldn't keep a straight face. "How dare you go to Vegas, and didn't invite me?"

"It was kind of a spur of the moment thing to be honest with you," Kara said, shrugging.

"You mentioned it off hand to Gwen," Claire argued with her cousin. Kara shook her head, amending her statement.

"Okay, fine, it was a spur of the moment thing, that became less of a spur of the moment thing, when I decided to go for it," Kara commented. "Are you happy about that explanation?"

"Next time you go to Vegas, invite me, I could have used the downtime," Claire said to her. "And…"

"Fine, next time I get married to Harry and Jean in Vegas, I'll be sure to invite you along."

Claire gave a sigh and a shrug. There was sometimes where she thought that her cousin missed the point. Then again, it ran on their side of the family.

"You walked right into it, didn't you?" Harry asked her.

Harry was just as bad as riling her up. That was why she liked him so much because he could push all of her buttons and stir her up something fierce just like that.

"Yeah, I walked into that, are you happy now?" Claire asked her. "So, what insanity did you cause? I'm actually capable to get arrested."

"Well, we did, but we made the cops think that they were cheerleaders and they let us off," Jean commented idly and she curled herself up onto Harry's lap. Kara found her spot onto Claire's lap. "We should have invited you, along with about a dozen other people. But the trip would have been less conspicuous."

Harry smiled at the banter. It was what truly made the world go around. He prepared for some more challenges. Some of those challenges would put the world in peril.

More adventures would continue even after this book was written. There wasn't a single doubt in Harry's mind regarding that.

**The End. **

* * *

><p><strong>Well that be all. Yes this scene ended with a similar scene that happened in the snippet almost a year ago. So you got the end before the beginning and you didn't know it at the time. That wasn't really intended that way, that's just how things fell in the year between the snippet and this story being completed.<strong>

**No sequels, because we've told the story, time to move on to other things. Although adventures continue. But they always will in any universe, unless everyone dies. Which would be a kind of sucky ending but that would be the only way to have a definite end to a universe, now wouldn't it?"**


End file.
